Passion of the Unorthodox
by SpiritOfMetal
Summary: One fateful spring morning, Acacia Filmond decided to go for a simple hike into the woods...little did she know, it would change her life forever. humanxpokemon
1. Walkabout

Hello everyone! In my short leave, I managed to come up with a story that I'm quite excited about. The pairing in this story is somewhat unconventional, hence the title. Please, please **no **flames. I think more people should do pairings like this (pokemon aren't _real _in the first place, so why the controversy?!)

Rated T due to language and slight gore. No lemons, but rating _miiight _go up later due to romance.

This chapter is short compared to the others. More is to come, I promise.

I hope you will enjoy.

~**SpiritOfMetal**

* * *

I awoke one morning to a sneezing fit that left my nose dripping like the roof of a cave.

I looked outside and noticed the warm, friendly sun shining through neon green tree buds. The air had a faint humid and crisp smell to it. I staggered out of bed and grabbed my tissue box off of my TV.

"Damn pollen." I mumbled through congestion. It was official – spring was here, and summer wasn't far away.

Acacia Filmond wriggled into a moss green tank top and shoved on a pair of worn denim capris. It was a beautiful day – the pokemon had already awoken, Chatot loudly announcing the morning. A sweet, caressing breeze whispered throughout her house, threatening doors to slam shut.

Acacia padded out of her room and arrived in the bathroom to look at the night's damage. Her hair was, of course, a mess, and her small cluster of pimples on her forehead were healing nicely. She blinked her burgundy eyes, tucked a stray lock of her strawberry brunette hair behind her ear and headed down stairs to fill her empty stomach.

She greeted Smokey, her best friend and pokemon Glameow. The cat pokemon mewed cheerfully, watching Acacia prepare a bowl of cereal and following her to an old, large oak table. Acacia sat and began to mow down her breakfast. Smokey hopped up on the chair across from her. Acacia looked up and saw a pair of light green eyes staring curiously at her.

"Hey, Smokey? What do you think of the weather today? Beautiful, huh?" Acacia mumbled through a full mouth. Smokey's eyes flitted beyond the girl, staring out at the woods beyond the open slider screen door. Acacia looked back at the Glameow, who was staring intently past her. Feeling the skin crawl on her back, Acacia wiped around in her seat and glared out at the woods. Bird pokemon jumped from branch to branch, feeding on special poke blocks her father had made for them on a wire feeder. A distant Pidgeot glided about higher up in the sky, slowly circling the area and hunting for prey. Acacia noticed nothing peculiar, spooky, or different about the yard. She turned back to find Smokey gone.

"Wha- Smokey? What were you looking at?" Acacia peered under the table to see the cat preening itself. The Glameow glanced at Acacia, then continued washing her face.

_Geuss it was those birds,_ Acacia thought to herself while she cleared her dishes from the table. She glanced at the thermometer outside the slider door – it read 61 degrees fahrenheit.

_Perfect weather for hiking…I haven' t explored the land around here since I was 17_, thought Acacia eagerly as she traveled back up the stairs to her bedroom. She had just hit the age of legal adulthood in December. Although she was an adult, she certainly didn't feel like one, and for that she was grateful. She was never going to get too old for exploring.

She hurriedly packed a small back pack with supplies for her hike. She tossed in a handkerchief, sunglasses, a small notebook, pencils, trail mix, ipod, and camera. After she was satisfied with her load, she headed back down stairs. She walked into the guest room to find her mother, Marie, typing away on a desktop computer. Marie was a freelance website/graphic designer, and she was currently working on an add for a new brand of pokeblock. Marie looked at Acacia with a glazed look on her face. Her expression brightened when she noticed Acacia's attire.

"Are you going off on another walkabout? This time it looks major, like you'll be camping under a rock ledge." said Marie with a playful smile. Walkabouts were what the Filmond family called Acacia's short walks around the property. They had no idea what she did, other then wander off with her headphones on. They worried about her, of course, but Acacia tried to explain to them that these walkabouts, as they called them, were very meditative and her way to relieve stress, or any other kind of overwhelming emotion. They would roll their eyes, and Acacia always knew that they would never understand.

"Yep, going to walk around for a while, gonna try to explore a bit further then I usually do." Acacia said with a sigh.

Marie turned back towards her computer and began typing with a frown.

"Well, don't wander too far. If you see George, tell him he needs to come home ASAP. He has to try to explain the flat tire on my bike."

George was Acacia's kid brother, whom was her opposite in almost every way. She was the quiet one, while he was constantly making noise. She loved to create while he loved to destroy things. She wasn't much of a people person, but he was constantly with his friends or talking to somebody on the phone. The siblings could live in the same place with no violence as long as they had their space far, far away from each other. Acacia liked him best when he wasn't in the house.

"Ugh. Well, I can't promise I'll see the pea brain out in the woods though."

Marie snorted, but continued typing.

Acacia mumbled a goodbye, then headed towards the front door. Smokey was sitting next to it expectantly. Acacia bent and gently rubbed her ears.

"Sorry girl, but I'm going to take this hike solo. I don't really feel like going out and looking for a battle, so just relax while I'm gone."

The Glameow only looked half disappointed, but purred contently while Acacia petted her head. Acacia waved to her pokemon, then shut the door behind her.

Smokey stared at the door, listening to her human walk down the wooden steps. She trotted over to the slider door and watched Acacia disappear down the steep gravel driveway.

Acacia rummaged through her back pack and pulled out her headphones. She placed them on her head, then turned on her ipod and switched it on shuffle mode. As soon as the first song came on, Acacia's mind, body and soul breathed a great sigh of relief. Her music transported her far away from her life to different worlds, and even made her appreciate the things around her. She smiled as she looked out across the small pond next to the driveway, watching the wind create shimmering ripples in its water. She closed her eyes and let the sun kiss her face with its warmth. It was when she listened to music that they could truly feel the life flowing around her.

Acacia came to a deserted asphalt road and took a right. She kept walking until she came to another heavily shaded gravel driveway on the left of the road. She walked up it, and her legs began to ache as the land gradually began to slope. She finally made it to the top of the hill. The forest had been somewhat cleared because someone had bought the property and intended to build. She was glad the people hadn't started to build…this was her favorite spot to relax. She hunkered down and sat against a tall tree and admired the view. She couldn't believe how high up she was. The hill was more like a small mountain.

Acacia turned off her ipod and put her headphones back in her back pack, then retrieved her water and took a swig of it.

The new foliage, the pleasant weather, the pokemon full of revived energy…the euphoric aura of spring was hard to resist. Acacia smiled to herself, closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting the scent of damp ground and grass fill her lungs.

Oh, how she loved living out in the country. The closest city was Pastoria City, about 20 minutes away. She had lived there once, and she certainly didn't miss it. There was always so much crime, pollution, noises…she preferred the peaceful life of living out in the country.

One thing she did miss, however, was the pokemon battles. She had always had a passion for pokemon, and had always felt she could understand them better then her own species.

When she was still in high school, she had become very good at battling pokemon. Smokey and her had faced off many opponents and had won most of the battles. All of this gradually came to an end when she moved out to the country and her parents confronted her about furthering her education. Acacia honestly didn't know what to do the rest of her life, but her parents reassured her that there was no rush in such a decision and could take all of the time she needed to consider a career. Acacia had always dreamed of going on adventures with her pokemon and traveling to faraway lands, but she knew she really couldn't make a living off of that. So far, her ideas for future careers were a Ranger, Scientist, or maybe even a Nurse.

Acacia sighed and opened her eyes. She was content to just sit in the same spot for hours, watching the world go by, but that wasn't what she had came to do.

She got to her feet, wiping grass off of her legs and hoisted her back pack over her shoulder. This clearing was where she usually walked around and listened to her music, but this time she intended to go farther. Off to the corner of the clearing was an overgrown trail. She had always eyed the trail nervously, expecting to see something large looming within its shadows. The trail didn't look so dark and foreboding anymore, and she could actually see down it a bit before the land sloped down at a sharp angle. She knew the trail was a long one, but she had no idea were it went. Today, she was going to find out.

Taking in a sharp breath, Acacia started down the hill to the shadowy trail. Once she got to it, she saw that the grass was a bit taller and she was thankful for her hiking shoes. She walked into the grass, watching her step and continued down the trail.

The trail wasn't nearly as scary as she thought it was. It was shadowy, yet the vegetation was greener and thicker then the woods around her house. She hummed to herself, watching the woods for signs of movement. She could hear the distant twitter of bird pokemon, which was comforting.

As Acacia made her way down the trail, she noticed a change in the geography. Large rocks began to poke out of the ground, and soon human sized boulders were a common sight. The forest was still thick, but it was strangely quiet. The air seemed wet, as if an invisible fog clung to the tree branches. Acacia gripped her backpack, wiping her sweaty hands off on her capris. The trail just seemed to keep going and going, and it was getting harder and harder for her to navigate it. Rocks got in her way, and bushes began to disguise the trail so that it was nearly indistinguishable from the surrounding woods. Acacia started to stack rocks and stick branches onto the ground were she could so she could follow the way back. She picked up a branch that had been weathered and stripped of its bark and used it as a walking staff. The strange silence made her heart pound and her ears ring, so she occasionally hummed TV commercial slogans under her breath.

She kept making markers and had to stop a few times to rest and munch on her trail mix, but trekked on. The woods were beautiful, but strange. The rocks that littered the area were stark white, like limestone, and dotted the landscape like oversized Mareep. Sometimes, a small movement would catch her eye, but she would look to see nothing. This made her increasingly paranoid, and soon she was jogging down the trail.

After a good ten minutes of jogging, Acacia stopped on top of a car sized boulder and wiped the sweat from her brow.

"Whew. Well, I don't even think I'm following a trail anymore. I better keep setting markers." she mumbled to herself. She hopped off the rock and set off at a brisk walk. A few minutes passed, and she heard wind rustling the branches of the trees. Bird pokemon could be heard faintly, and Acacia sensed that she wasn't far from a clearing. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, and Acacia barged through the forest, excited at what she might find. Luckily, she stopped just in time. She gasped, finding her footing on a rock and stopped herself. A ravine snaked its way through the forest, a small stream running down its middle. Acacia followed it and noticed the ravine grow wider and deeper until rocky outcroppings stopped her from going any further. The stream joined a murky river that rushed with white water. It was a large, wide river that looked as if it was trying to cut a deep line out of the land around it. Rocky cliffs rose above it on both sides, some of them towering.

Acacia was stunned.

"Woooow…" she murmured, taking in the beauty of the sheer rock cliffs and rushing water.

Itching with excitement, she slung her backpack onto a rock and scrambled for her camera. She shoved it in her pocket, grabbed her walking stick and jumped from rock to rock along the river. She gradually began to gain altitude, coming closer to a rock cliff that jutted out of the forest. She noticed how high up she was getting and stayed well away from the edge of the rocks. She snapped pictures of the river, the trees, the cliffs, bird pokemon and fish pokemon. After a few more shots, she turned off her camera and set it down next to her as she relaxed on a flat rock outcropping, resting her achy legs. She smiled and chuckled to herself, lying flat out on the rock.

_Gosh, this place is so, so wonderful. I'm so lucky to have found it. I'm so lucky that nobody else has found it._

At that thought, Acacia sat up and looked around her. The place hadn't been touched by a human for quite some time. People might have been here, but they did a good job cleaning up after themselves.

Acacia gazed at the river for a while, watching a few Pelipper hunt the water for a meal. Acacia's eyes grew heavy, the rushing water and soft breeze lulling her into sleep. She folded her arms behind her head and closed her eyes, letting the sounds of nature carry her mind away. Just as a dream began to form itself, a loud clatter jolted her awake. She shot up, hands scrabbling for her walking stick when something hard made contact with her elbow.

"Ow!" she shouted, turning her head just in time to watch her camera plummet from her rock outcropping.

"_Fuck_!" she shouted, jumping to the edge of her rock. She watched the camera clatter on a few other shelfs, then land softly on a small rock ledge.

"Agh! Damn it!" she shouted through clenched teeth, whipping her head around and searching for the source of the noise that woke her. She grabbed her walking stick and stood, her heart pounding. The noise had sounded like it had come from the cliff next to her.

"Hello? Anybody there?" she called, listening to her echo bounce back to her. She stood still, watching for movement. Nothing but the peaceful swaying of the trees.

"Must have been a bird pokemon knocking over some stones…" she murmured to herself nervously. She eyed the woods surrounding her, but all was calm.

An unnerving feeling crept over Acacia, like she was being watched. Suddenly, the river side didn't seem so welcoming anymore. She should be heading back home soon anyway, her stomach was beginning to growl.

Lying on her stomach, Acacia peered down the crevice that her camera had fallen through. She saw it clearly, and thankfully it hadn't broken during its fall. She crawled to the edge of her rock slab and hung her head over the side. There were many small shelfs, each one not far from the other.

_If I'm careful, I might be able to get the thing and go back home._

Acacia tentatively peered down at the river, which seemed to drop before her eyes. Her head spun, and she pulled herself away from the ledge.

"I just have to be careful. I can do this…" she gulped, then slowly began to dangle her body over the edge of the rock. Relief flooded her senses as her feet found a flat surface. She put her weight on it and it didn't budge. Looking down, she could see the camera on a rock six feet away. She slowly sidestepped towards her camera, clinging to the cliff for dear life. Now, she was only four feet away from the camera. A large gap separated her from the rock that her camera rested on, a gap that she would not be able to jump. She leaned towards the camera, her limbs straining to keep a hold on the cliff. She reached a shaky hand out.

"Almost…got it…" she gasped, wiggling her fingers towards the camera that was now only a foot away. She took one final lunge –

The rock under her feet gave way, unable to support her weight any longer. Time seemed to slow, and the world abruptly became muted. She dug her finger nails into the slippery rock as she fell. Her elbow bashed into a rock, but she could feel no pain. All she could feel was the raw panic that numbed her thought process. She watched as the cliff face grew farther and farther away. Her vision began to blur and become dark, like she was falling into a well. Just before her sight failed, she saw a faint blur of something brilliant red.

_Like a rose, _she thought distantly.

It was completely dark, and Acacia seemed to be floating.

Something slammed into her side. The velocity of it made her mentally crumble, and she was no longer aware of her body. A dizzying force could be felt, followed by an almost electronic thrum. She weakly reached towards the thrum and felt it connect to her being. Gradually, the pain that she had felt earlier was replaced by a soft warmth that numbed her panic and soothed her tension.

She soon felt herself being lulled into a deep, velvety somnolence.


	2. Collision

Yep, another chapter. I hope this chapter is a bit more fulfilling then the other one.

I like to bring more reality to my pokemon stories. I didn't like the happy-go-lucky kiddish feel the anime had to it. Its just my own little twist on things, I suppose. Just a random tidbit of FYI.

Happy reading,

~**SpiritOfMetal**

* * *

_Dead….I was dead. Gone. Caput. _

_I could see nothing…I could feel nothing. Just blackness. I could feel, but not in the physical sense. It was like I could feel with my mind, with my soul. I felt as if I was trapped in a vat of murky jello…my thoughts were shallow and lasted no more then a few seconds. _

_The sticky, cold glue that suspended me slowly began to dissolve, and I found my thoughts growing more solid. _

_I noticed a light…then it was like something sucked me up in a vacuum cleaner. It happened so fast, I didn't have time to fully grasp what was happening until –_

"_G-UH_!" Acacia choked, coughing and gasping as if she had just been pulled out of the sea. She sat up and wiped her watery eyes, suddenly aware of the cool surface she was lying on.

_Wait…something's not right. Didn't I fall from…a cliff?! Shouldn't I be dead?!_

Acacia rubbed at her eyes until they stopped watering. Once her vision cleared, she looked around her.

She was sitting in a damp stone overpass, or cave more or less. Moss clung to its walls, and stagnant pools of water sat around her. The rushing sound of water could be heard from the entrance. Acacia crawled towards the opening, then jumped back in surprise. She had nearly fallen again, and this time it would have been a far longer drop. She recognized the same river, but she was in a small cave on the side of one of the larger cliffs along the ravine.

"Holy crude, how the hell did I get up here?!" she exclaimed.

Something sharp poked her on her shoulder, and Acacia nearly jumped out of the cave. She froze, then slowly turned around to see what was looming over her.

A dark, tall figure stood a few feet away from her. A pair of large, gleaming amber eyes stared at her.

A scream caught in Acacia's throat. She knew that some pokemon hated to be looked directly in the eyes, and a voice in her head kept telling her to look away, but she found herself being drawn to them. They were such an intense yellow, with a contrasting ring of orange around the outside cornea. She thought she saw some flecks of green at the center. A slightly narrow, black pupil was in the middle. The eyes blinked, which brought her back to reality. Those eyes were too big to belong to a human.

"Uh, um…" she stammered. Words were oddly hard to form. She slowly began to back herself up to the lip of the cave. If the pokemon attacked, she would at least be able to jump and hope that she landed in the water.

"H-hi." She stuttered. "Please don't hurt me. I don't know how I got in the cave, but I can leave if you want me to."

The eyes blinked.

"And just how would you go about doing that?" said a resonating, masculine voice.

Acacia looked around frantically. "What? Who said that? Anybody else here?" The voice had sounded like it had belonged to a young twenty year-old man.

The golden eyes widened. "You…you can understand me?!" the voice gasped.

"Yeah, I can understand you just fine." Acacia said quietly, watching the eyes. The hair on the back of her neck rose as realization dawned on her.

_Just who in the world am I talking to? It can't be a pokemon, they can't speak English…can they?_

"Who are you?" she whispered, watching the dark form.

The eyes stared back at her , then came closer. The dark shadow that concealed the creature disappeared as it approached her. It had a brilliant red body, two massive, dangerous looking claws and three pointed crests on its head. Its thorax was sharply defined and well toned. Its abdomen was pointed, and two sturdy, long legs supported it. The creature had what looked to be a pair of large, translucent wings.

The being appeared to be a mix between a slim man and a bug.

_A…a Scizor..?_

"Did you…were you the one who saved me?"

The Scizor's expression relaxed a bit. It's mouth began moving. "Yes, It was me."

Acacia was stunned. This was a pokemon standing before her, and she could understand every word as clear as day.

"Thank you…" she murmured, feeling oddly embarrassed. "… I was trying to get my camera, and the rocks fell from underneath me…" she trailed off. An awkward silence followed, and the Scizor's gaze fell to the ground.

"I saw you trying to reach it."

"Yeah, and it was a really stupid move."

The Scizor was silent, then turned and walked towards the back of the cave. Acacia watched the pokemon move with grace unknown to humans. Its joints and muscles shifted with ease and fluidity.

It reached up towards a notch in the wall, and Acacia saw a glint of something silver. It approached her, and Acacia saw her camera in his pincer-like claw. It stopped and moved its fearsome claw towards her. Acacia flinched, then realized it was offering her the camera. She reached out a shaky hand and took it. She watched the sun gleam off of the claw, highlighting it's razor sharp edges. It looked deadly, able to rip through flesh in a second. The eye spots made her nervous, like they were watching her.

"T-thank you…" she murmured, looking at her camera. It had a few scratches and dents, but otherwise it was fine.

The Scizor watched her curiously as she turned it on to check to see if it still worked. She took a few test pictures, then jammed it into her pocket.

"What are you called?" The Scizor asked as he fixed his eyes on her.

"You mean my name? Its Acacia." She said. "Do you have a name?"

"…Scion. My name's Scion."

"Hm, that's a cool name."she said, kicking a stray pebble. "Have…have you always been able to talk to humans?"

The Scizor tensed, then clicked its claws. "All pokemon understand human speech. Some of us can even speak it directly. I wasn't aware that I could do this until now." he said thoughtfully.

"I have been pretty good at understanding pokemon, but I never really _understood_ what they were saying…until I met you." Acacia said, staring wonderingly at the Scizor. He caught her gaze, and they quickly looked away from each other.

"Its strange." he said.

"Yeah, but I think its awesome. I have always wanted to be able to understand pokemon speech."

The Scizor smirked, then sat down on a nearby rock. Acacia's legs were weak from her hike, so she plopped herself on the cave floor.

"So, do you live here?" she asked, gesturing to the cave.

The Scizor chuckled. "I sleep here occasionally, but I prefer dryer places."

"I don't blame you. My butts already soaked."

The Scizor chuckled again, and Acacia smiled.

_This pokemon has a good sense of humor._

Acacia picked at her nail. A bird pokemon called in the distance.

"Thank you for saving me, Scion. I don't really remember what happened…all I can recall was loosing my balance, then falling…the rest is blank." She murmured.

Scion looked up from his feet. "I was minding my own business when I heard your camera fall. I saw you try to get it, then plummet towards the ground. I couldn't just stand there and watch you fall to your death, so I dived after you and caught you. You were knocked out…I guess you fainted on the way down, so I flew to this cave and watched over you while you slept."

Acacia nodded. She knew she had been lucky for Scion to be around when she fell.

"I'm definitely going to be more careful next time."

The Scizor arose, then walked to the entrance of the cave and gazed out at the sky. His shiny red body blazed in the sunshine, nearly blinding Acacia.

"The weather has been spectacular today…" Scion murmured with a sigh. "Too bad it has to end so soon…" The Scizor flexed its wings, then relaxed them.

"Wait…its ending?" Acacia said, stumbling to her feet. The last time she was conscious, it had been noon.

Scion nodded, gesturing a claw towards the darkening sky. The sun was beginning to hide itself behind the trees, turning the clouds into an opal pink. Acacia could feel the mist of nighttime begin to settle.

"Whoa, I must have been knocked out for some time." Acacia turned towards the Scizor who was looking at her with gentle curiosity. His eyes were set afire by the setting sun.

"Scion, I have to go back home now. It's important that I get back before dinner."

Scion frowned, then looked at the river. "Ah, curfews. I hate curfews."

Acacia laughed. "Heh, I hate 'em too, but I don't really have a curfew today. I'm just starving."

As if on cue, Acacia's stomach gurgled. She held her abdomen, wincing as cramps began to take hold. Her stomach was completely empty. She reddened as Scion smirked.

"Well, you certainly aren't lying." he chuckled.

"I wish I could stay longer, this place is amazing, but my mom is probably getting a little worried about me by now, so…"

Acacia peered over the edge of the cave.

Scion stepped in front of her. "Don't be getting any ideas, now. Flying is much less painless then falling."

Acacia scoffed, then crossed her arms. "I'm not that stupid. I don't just go around hurling myself off of cliffs."

The Scizor teetered at the edge of the cave, his wings fully spread. He glanced at her and gave her a sly, playful smile. "Could have fooled me."

Before Acacia could protest, Scion nimbly leaped into the air. Acacia held her breath as gravity began to pull him back down. Suddenly, his wings became a flurry of motion, and a faint hum echoed throughout the cave. He hovered closer to the cave, then held out a claw to her. "Take my claw." he said.

Acacia hesitated. She certainly didn't feel like loosing a hand…she knew if she stuck her hand into that pincer, it would surely cut it off.

"Don't worry, it won't hurt." he said calmly.

_He did save me from death…I guess I can trust him._

Acacia tenderly slipped her hand between his pincers. He slowly closed them around her hand, and to her surprise it felt warm and soft, almost like a human hand.

"I can control the pressure of my claws. Depending on mood, the tips of my claws can be sharp or soft."

Acacia relaxed, slightly enjoying the calming warmth. "What do I do now?" she asked.

"You'll have to jump towards me."

Acacia froze. "No, you gotta be kidding me…" The river below her began to plunge again, and Acacia grew lightheaded and dizzy.

"Hey. Just focus on me. Don't look down, and trust me."

His voice snapped her out of her nauseating trance, and Acacia gulped. Her heart raced, and her hands began to sweat. Scion was the only way out of the cave, the only way back home. Her only choice was to trust him…the other option was out of the question.

_Okay…one, two…THREE!_

Before common sense could tell her otherwise, Acacia sprang off of the cliff.

Time once again slowed, and Acacia did the one thing she was told not to: she looked.

She saw her little legs dangling in open air over the huge river. She was free falling, and the sensation stopped her heart for a second. The bitter sweet mixture of horror and ecstasy intoxicated her, and her head spun with adrenaline.

The split second passed, and she felt herself being pulled towards the Scizor with much force. His claw let go of her hand and she panicked, but something hard cushioned her back and his claw swung underneath her to support her legs. It all happened so fast, Acacia barley had time to realize that she wasn't still falling.

"Wow, that was…whew…"she exclaimed, her head reeling.

Scion smiled. "_This_ is the fun part."

Acacia felt herself accelerate, and her head whipped back before she could react. Wind blew through her hair, and she opened her eyes to see the world zipping by at a scary speed. Scion dove at a 45 degree angle towards the river, and Acacia felt butterflies flapping around in her stomach. She grinned and laughed, opening her hands, feeling the air currents whistle between her fingers. It was absolutely euphoric.

Scion dipped a bit lower towards the ground and slowed his speed. He came to a stop, then gently set Acacia on a rock slab. She stumbled, the blood beginning to flow back into her sleepy legs. At first, she was disappointed…the flight had been so wonderful. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced, and it was over in less then a few minutes.

Then she noticed a dark object on a nearby boulder.

"Oh crap, I forgot all about my stuff!" she exclaimed, running over to her backpack. She picked it up, then slipped it onto her back.

She turned towards the Scion, about to thank him for his kindness, but the look on his face stopped her. He stood very still, his eyes wide and putting off a faint glow. He was staring into the darkening forest.

Goosebumps crawled on her flesh, and Acacia whipped her head around to see what he was looking at. The forest seemed to have a new aura now. It was uncannily quite, and the shadows seemed to radiate a sinister intention. Darkness clung to the trees branches like moss.

She looked back at Scion, alarmed. "W-what is it?" she asked, her voice breaking.

He blinked and looked at her, breaking out of his trance.

"The woods are friendly during the day time, don't get me wrong, but certain pokemon roam this forest at nighttime that are very dangerous."

Acacia grew cold, and she shivered.

"I have been in this forest before near twilight, and no pokemon ever bothered me." She said, feeling nervous.

"…You were lucky. These pokemon don't like humans too much, but…" Scion trailed off, once again looking into the forest like he was listening for something. He grew very still, and his eyes suddenly widened.

Panic welled up in her chest, and she started breathing rapidly. He stepped towards her, and Acacia was quickly aware of how close he was to her. She could feel the heat coming off of his body. Her skin prickled, and she suppressed a shiver.

She looked up and met his eyes.

"These pokemon like to hunt, and anything could be on their menu." He said in a hushed, serious voice.

"They like to eat humans, don't they?" she asked, a note of despair in her tone.

His intense gaze softened. "Well, not all the time, but if they ever came across one alone in the forest, I don't think they would hesitate…" he trailed off, almost looking ashamed.

"I get the idea."she mumbled, the thought of a pokemon eating her filling her with horror.

"Because of that reason, I can't let you go home by yourself." he said, looking her directly in the eyes.

This caught Acacia off guard. "Then…are you going to take me?"

"Yes, if you guide me." he said gently.

Just then, a deep, gurgling cry echoed from deep within the forest.

Acacia froze, paralyzed with terror.

She felt Scion's soft claw clasp onto her wrist.

"We better go."

"Y-yeah." she whispered shakily. She could hear bushes rustling and the grunts of some large pokemon in the distance.

Acacia grabbed his claw and Scion carefully swung her into his arms. He took off over the river, then flew high over the forest. His wings barley made any noise, and the chilly night air soon turned her exposed skin numb.

She was just glad she wasn't in the forest any longer.

It was hard for her to navigate above the forest, but Scion soon spotted what looked like a trail and she confirmed it was the one she had followed. Before she knew it, she spotted her hang-out clearing.

"There!" she pointed. "That's were I found the trail."

Scion glanced at the ground, but kept flying. Acacia was about to protest, but she figured if he thought the clearing wasn't safe, it probably wasn't.

He dove into the trees, then landed at the entrance of the driveway that she had walked up earlier. She jumped out of his arms, grateful to be in a place she recognized.

"Geez, this day has been quite a different one." she said, yawning.

Scion nodded. "Same here."

"I still can't figure out how we can understand each other."

"Neither can I…" he said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. " I still need time on that one."

"Yup."

Acacia looked at her feet, unsure of how to say goodbye to him. She looked up and saw him staring at the ground.

"Hey Scion, I just wanna thank you again for what you have done for me. I wish there was a way to pay you back…" she trailed off. An idea struck her, and she tugged off her backpack and dug around in it. She pulled out her bag of trail mix and a water bottle.

"Here. Take these – this is all I have that you might like, and it just wouldn't feel right if I didn't return some form of kindness."

Scion looked at her offerings, then cocked his head thoughtfully. He gingerly took the items in his claws. "Thanks." he said quietly.

"Well, I have to go now…" she said, stepping away from him onto the road. He remained in the shadows of the driveway, holding the gifts. "Goodbye." he said, then turned and flew off into the forest before Acacia could say anything.

Acacia heard some branches stir, then nothing more but the singing of bug pokemon.

"Bye.." she whispered, staring into the forest. She felt lonely, like there was a hole were his presence should be. Wistfulness tugged at her heart.

She felt colder now then she had when she was flying through the air. She shivered, then took one more glance at the forest before she started walking down the empty road to her driveway.

When Acacia returned home, she found herself in somewhat of a daze. Dinner was already in the fridge, and she made a plate of it then ate it. She stared out of the slider door, wondering what could be lurking in the dark woods.

Her mother stopped her before she could go to her room and asked her were she had been. Acacia restated that she had gone on a long hike and nothing more. Her mother asked if she was ok, but Acacia told her she was just tired, then continued to her room.

She changed into her pajamas, then flopped onto her bed.

She was exhausted, but she felt as if she had just woken up from a dream. Her adventure didn't seem real…it just couldn't be. Yet she had a bruised, scraped and slightly sore body to prove otherwise. Plus, her trail mix and water bottle were missing.

Her mind too tired to analyze what had happened during the day, she quickly slipped into a deep slumber.

* * *

Tell me what you think!


	3. Virulence in the Moor

This chapter is longer and has some action in it. Thats all I'm going to disclose for now. It took a while, but I really enjoyed writing it.

I hope you enjoy,

~**SpiritOfMetal**

* * *

Acacia's dreams that night were faint and distant. She kept feeling an electric thrum that pulsed deep within her chest. It was accompanied by a warmth that felt familiar…

.*.

Scion awoke the next morning in his cave alcove. He yawned and stretched, then walked to the lip of his cave. Dawn was just arriving – he could sense the other pokemon waking up and warming in the sun's week rays.

He turned and saw the sun glinting off of the water bottle that the curious human, Acacia, had given him. It perched upon a stone shelf, the bag of trail mix resting next to it.

He sat, dangling his legs over the cave ledge. He closed his eyes, letting the sun warm his cool skin.

That night he had had a fitful sleep. None of the rocks in the cave felt comfortable, and the moss was wet and chilly. His mind kept replaying what had happened – and just how he had met a human who could understand him.

Earlier that day, he had poked around the river valley, collecting berries to eat, flying and practicing barrel rolls when he decided to rest on a cliff point. He had fallen asleep listening to the Pelippers chatter when he sensed something on the edge of his mind. It felt as if a warm feather had brushed his conscious. It shocked him awake, and he crouched low on the cliff, waiting for something to arrive.

Minutes passed, and he soon heard the braking of twigs and the rustle of grass. A human girl appeared among the bushes, murmuring to herself. She saw the river and looked stunned, as if she had never seen the place before. She dropped her belongings on a boulder, then took out a shiny gray object from a bag she had on her shoulders. Scion recognized the object as a piece of machinery the humans used to take pictures, what they called a camera.

She went around taking pictures, hoping from rock formation to rock formation. Her light brown hair shined in the sun, and she moved about the area as if she respected it, taking care to avoid stepping on any kind of vegetation. Her legs were nimble and quick. Scion was entranced. He had never seen or felt a human quite like this before. She was different…she seemed to exude a love for life.

After a while she stopped on a cliff slab close to his, then relaxed, laying herself out in the sun and falling asleep.

Scion was very curious of her, and he was getting antsy and uncomfortable pressed against the rocks.

_Agh. I can't just hide here the whole day. I have to show myself. Maybe she'll be friendly if I approach her calmly,_ he thought.

He quietly began picking his way between the rocks, coming down the cliff when a rock slipped out from under his feet. Stifling his shout of shock, he scrambled to gain footing again, knocking over more rocks. They fell down the cliff, clattering loudly as they hit other boulders.

_Son of an Arcanine! This is just great…_he thought, grinding his teeth. He saw her begin to stir, and he quickly flew back behind the cliff.

He waited, then heard something else clatter, followed by a shout. He slowly peeked over the top of the cliff. The girl was standing, clutching a large stick. She looked spooked, nervously watching the forest. After a few seconds, she dropped her stick then laid on her stomach, peering down a rock crevice. She got to her feet again, then looked over the ledge of the slab.

_She must have dropped something…_

She murmured to herself again, then began to slowly ease herself over the edge of the slab.

Scion stood up on his cliff, alarmed as he watched her disappear from view.

_Shes out of her mind! No human can scale these cliffs…_

He clicked his claws anxiously, then flew lower down the cliff and peered over the side of it. He saw her clinging to the rock wall with all her might, tediously inching down the wall. Something shiny caught his eye, and he noticed a camera sitting on a mossy ledge.

_She dropped her camera._ He clenched his jaw. _This is NOT going to end well. No way._

She kept moving closer to the camera, closer until she came to a break in the rocks that separated her from her prize. Scion caught his breath. He could see it happening before it did-

The girl stretched out her hand, desperately trying to grasp the camera when the shelf broke away from underneath her. She gasped, her eyes wide in terror as she began to fall towards the river. Her limbs waved in the air, striking rocks as she fell. She shrieked, which brought Scion back from his bewilderment.

_I'm not about to watch a human die!_

He grasped the cliff, then launched himself off the ledge with all the strength he had. He narrowed his body, gaining speed quickly. She was falling faster then he thought possible, and a horrible doubt crossed his mind that he might not catch her in time.

_No, I won't let it happen!_ his mind screamed as he kicked his wings into gear, gaining more momentum. He opened his claws, then bashed into her with jarring force. As he caught the girl, Scion felt as if a lightning bolt had passed through his body. His mind went blank, and his nerves hummed. He quickly opened his eyes again, his vision blurry, then unfurled his wings before he crashed into the water.

He flew to a nearby boulder and collapsed onto it, trying to catch his breath. He looked down at the creature in his arms.

She was unconscious, and Scion was unsure of what knocked her out: a rock, the terror of falling, or the force that he had hit her with. Her expression was peaceful, which moved Scion to believe she hadn't sustained any major injuries. She had some bruises and some scrapes on her elbows, but other then that she seemed ok.

He flew a bit further up the river until he found a cave he had visited before, then gingerly laid her on a patch of soft moss. He left again, searching the cliffs for the camera. When he found it, he picked it up with his claw and held it up to the sun, inspecting it.

"If it was worth her risking her life, then it must be pretty special…" he mumbled, scowling, then zipped back to the cave.

When he returned, he came to see that the girl had not stirred. He approached her and knelt by her side, finally getting a better look at her.

The girl had a slender figure and looked to be a young adult. She had olive skin and brown-blondish hair, the ends slightly more highlighted. Her hair went a bit past shoulder length, and her bangs were cut at an angle. Her lips were full and salmon colored. Her ears were pierced with jeweled green and amber paw print earrings.

Scion could hear her slow, deep breathing and the faint thud of her heart. Something stirred within him, making his skin tingle and his pulse quicken.

He had watched over her until she awoke.

Scion opened his eyes again, then sighed. Acacia was the girl's name, and that was all he knew about her. The name was unusual, but he found himself liking it. It sounded natural, and it seemed to fit her.

He scraped the point of his claw along a rock, making a white line.

What had happened the other day was more excitement then he had experienced in a long, long time. He hadn't come in direct contact with a human since his older trainer had released him, and that had been a very long time ago.

Maybe that was why he found himself thinking about her so much.

His stomach growled, and he put his claw over his belly. He glanced at the baggie sitting next to the water bottle.

Scion had had human food before, but never what the girl had called trail mix.

_Its worth a try,_ he thought, standing and walking over to the items, taking them in his claws. He returned to his sitting spot, then eyed the containers contents.

The bottle was half full, and water sloshed around in it. The baggie had what looked like different nuts, dried fruits and colorful looking candies.

He poked a small hole in the baggie, tilted back his head, opened his mouth and shook out a few morsels. When he felt the pieces land in his mouth, he chewed. The fist thing he tasted was the nuts; they were crunchy, salty and smokey. Next were the fruits- they were chewy and sweet. The last flavor was the candies, and it was by far his favorite. They were sweet, creamy and tasted like what the humans called chocolate.

"This stuff isn't bad at all!" he exclaimed, smiling. He finished the bag in a few seconds.

It didn't do much to fill him, but at least his stomach had something to digest. His mouth was dry now, so he painstakingly unscrewed the cap to the bottle and poured the liquid into his mouth. It was cool and refreshing.

Scion put the lid back on the bottle and set the containers aside. The gifts that the girl had given him hade came in handy, and he was thankful for them.

Mildly satisfied, Scion stretched his wings and claws. He had the notion to go try to find some berries to eat, but he just didn't have the motivation.

Ever since his old trainer, Dominic, had released him, pokemon had been wary of him. They still chatted with him and were friendly, but he carried the scent of his old trainer, which made them cautious. Dominic's scent was just beginning to weaken, but Scion knew that he would always carry his old friend's smell. Acacia was the closest thing he had to a friend, and Scion knew it was pitiful but true.

_I wonder if I will ever see her again, _he thought wistfully, watching the sky.

A flock of Taillow fluttered by, talking among themselves about a thicket of Rawst berries they were heading to.

_I better beat them to it before they eat all of em._

Scion soared out of the cave, but not without his new containers.

.*.

Acacia awoke to the smell of scrambled eggs. She yawned, feeling as if a Tauros had ran her over. She felt an awkward thrum throughout her body, especially at her fingertips. She rubbed her eyes, willing the feeling away.

_It must be the leftover stuff from a dream, _she thought dismissively. She got up, then padded downstairs to help herself to the eggs her mom had made for breakfast.

Smokey the Glameow showed up in the dinning room. She strolled up to Acacia, then sniffed her leg. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide and she stared at Acacia, her tail flicking.

Acacia noticed Smokey and smiled. "Good morning, Smokey." she said happily. Smokey continued to glare at her.

"What?" she asked. "Oh, you smell Scion. A Scizor saved me from death yesterday. Neat, huh?"

Smokey blinked, but didn't look impressed.

"I'm sorry if his smell offends you. I didn't think he had a smell at all…" she murmured, thinking about the other day. Now that she thought about it, the Scizor did have a scent- he had smelled very faintly of fresh grass and sun-warmed rocks. She had found his scent enjoyable.

Smokey was still sitting there, as if waiting for something.

"Alright. How about we go out and train for a bit? The weather is supposed to be nice today."

At this, Smokey brightened and meowed happily. Acacia bent and rubbed her head.

"I'm just gonna go get ready, then we can vamoose."

Acacia ran upstairs, took a shower, then changed into a pair of bootleg jeans and a black t-shirt with a rose pattern on it. She put a pokeball clip on her jeans, then clicked Smokey's pokeball on it. Acacia returned down stairs and saw Smokey waiting on a window sill.

"C'mon!" she called, opening the door. Smokey bolted from her perch, then streaked out the door. Acacia followed, calling to her mom that she was going out to train.

Scion soared down the river, dodging various bird pokemon. He had managed to get ahead of the morning crowd, but they would soon catch up to him. Taking a sharp right, he zoomed above the forest. After a second he slowed his speed and began to search the forest for the tell-tale brilliant colors of berries.

He passed a few thickets already being mobbed by hungry pokemon, but soon he came upon a small, far out patch of berries. He swooped down, alighting softly in the grass. It was a secluded patch, quiet and showing signs of low popularity with the pokemon. Only brave pokemon wandered out this far…because the thicket was closer to human captivity then the others.

Scion walked up to a bush and clipped off a few berries with his claw. They had green, curly stems and bright red fruit. He recognized them as Cheri berries, and popped them into his mouth. He strolled to another bush that grew a different kind of fruit. They were a pale blue and triangular shaped. They were Rawst berries, and he threw a couple into his mouth and grimaced. Rawst berries were very healthy, but they packed a powerful bitterness. He preferred them over the strong spiciness of the Cheri. He placed a few into his baggie, filling it with a combination of the two fruits. Once the bag was full to bursting, he rested under a tree and sighed.

The berries weren't nearly as palatable as the trail mix had been.

Acacia and Smokey walked down the small asphalt road. They passed the steep driveway that Acacia had traveled the day before. She stared into the shadows, hoping to see the familiar Scizor's form. All she saw was a Hoothoot nestled into a hole in a pinetree. She was disappointed, but traveled onward. They came to a curve in the road, then traveled up into the forest from there. They trekked through a small wooded area, then came upon a grassy clearing. Fruit trees were sprinkled throughout the tall grass and at the end of the field was a thick bog. Acacia had taken Smokey to the clearing to train before, but she avoided the bog. She didn't want to get stuck in its quick-sand like ooze, and it just gave her the creeps.

"Ok, Smokey. You can runaround and practice what ever you like, then we can do some target shots." she said, sitting underneath a tree.

Smokey nodded, then disappeared in a flash of movement as she executed a quick attack.

Acacia looked up above her head. The tree she was sitting under was pretty close to the ground, and its branches were nicely spaced.

_The perfect tree for climbing._

Acacia stood, then jumped and grabbed onto a branch. She hoisted herself up, then continued climbing until she was on the highest branch there was. She watched Smokey run around the field at great speeds.

_She's getting really fast, but Scion would have her beat in a second…_

Acacia was appalled that she had thought that about her own pokemon, but it was true. Smokey would probably never be as fast as the speedy bug pokemon. After all, bug pokemon were known for being very fast, and Scion had an aerodynamic body and slick wings. He was built for speed.

After a few more minutes, Acacia called Smokey in and returned to the ground.

"Now, lets try to practice your timing. I'll throw some rocks into the air, then you try to quick attack it before it hits the ground."

Smokey went into an attack stance, and Acacia hurled a pebble upwards. Smokey sprung into the air, disappeared, then appeared again five feet away with a pebble in her mouth.

"Hm. That seemed a little too easy…ok, I'll throw a rock higher this time, and you have to hit it."

Smokey nodded, dropping the pebble and making a face as if it tasted bad.

Acacia found a slightly bigger rock, threw it and watched. Smokey missed the rock a few times, but she got the hang of it quickly. Acacia threw the rock a last time and Smokey leaped into the air, vanished, then reappeared high up in the air and whacked the rock with her paw. The rock smacked the ground with force, and Smokey landed gracefully on her feet.

Acacia clapped. "Good job, you're doing great today!"

Acacia went through a few more exercises, each one aiming on a different skill of Smokey's, testing each one of the attacks she knew.

"The last attack we have to work on is your iron tail. I know you just learned it, but I think you will be great at it."

Smokey sat in front of Acacia, looking quite pleased with herself.

Acacia crossed her arms, scanning the field.

She couldn't use the pebbles she had been using for the other exercises; they were too small and would shatter too easily. Fruit from the trees would just make a mess, and they were about the same size as the pebbles. Branches lying around were too skinny and a bit too soft.

Acacia's eyes landed on the distant murk of the swamp. She knew there were head sized rocks around the shore, and that was exactly what she needed.

She tapped her lip, then sighed. "It looks like we have no choice…we have to go to the bog."

The bog didn't bother Smokey, but it gave Acacia goose bumps just by thinking about it. They walked through the field until they came into denser forest, then arrived at the marsh. The soil around the swamp was black, and the water seemed just as dark. A sulfur-ish smell blew off the stagnant pond, making Acacia's nose wrinkle. Vines hung from the small trees that surrounded the pit like snakes.

"Mkay…" Acacia grunted, bending over and picking up a good sized rock from the muck. It was heavy, and she struggled to keep it in one hand.

"Just use iron tail and launch it into the swamp." she grunted.

Smokey nodded, her tail beginning to glow with the impending attack.

Acacia heaved the rock, and Smokey ran at it and jumped, swinging her long tail. She made contact with the rock, but it only went a few feet before it thunked back into the mud with a splat. They were both splattered with mud.

"Agh! Dang it…this mud smells awful." she said, brushing the muck off her legs.

Smokey mewed apologetically, shaking her fur off.

Acacia attempted the exercise with a different rock, but this time she failed to throw it far enough and it ended up thudding into the sludge again, covering them with even more mud.

"Pleh! Ack!" she gagged, spitting out dirt.

Once she got herself cleaned off again, Acacia lugged up a larger rock.

"Okay…this one is super heavy, so you will have to hit it with all you got. Don't hold back, and put lots of momentum into your tail."

Smokey meowed, looking a little nervous, but readied herself.

"UGH!" Acacia grunted, chucking the rock as far as she could.

It sailed up in the air, and Smokey leaped, turned, then slammed her tail into the rock. Acacia heard a crack like a bat hitting a baseball and saw the rock plunk into the water a few feet out.

"Woo! Good job!" she cheered, clapping her hands.

Smokey landed on the ground, a toothy smirk on her lips.

The turbid water in the middle of the swamp stirred, but neither of the two noticed.

Acacia ran and picked up an earlier attempted rock.

Smokey was in her stance, so Acacia lobed it into the air.

Smokey lunged, turned, then hammered the rock with her tail. The rock flew farther out, then struck something before it landed in the water.

"You must have hit a log. That was the best one yet!" Acacia exclaimed, impressed. Smokey beamed, her teeth shining.

Acacia sighed, then brushed some dried mud off of her arm.

"You did excellent today. My arms are already sore, so let's call it quits."

Smokey nodded, satisfied with herself, and walked next to Acacia as they started out of the bog.

Acacia opened her mouth to say something when a dark, large object whizzed between the two of them. Acacia gasped, and Smokey turned, her eyes wide and her ears flattened.

Acacia whirled around to see what had thrown a rock at them, and the color drained from her face.

A tall, dark figure stood at the bank of the swamp. It had pale, intense yellow eyes and a long point on its bulbous forehead. It clenched its fists, then took a heavy step towards them.

"Oh…no…" Acacia whispered, frozen in place with fear.

Smokey ran in front of Acacia, hissing, poofing up her fur.

A wide, malevolent grin spread across the creatures face. A rumbling sound resonated from the creature, and a large, red sack on its chin began to inflate.

Acacia recognized the creepy grin and red throat-sak with a shock.

"It's a Toxicroak!" she said shakily. Dread filled her. She knew that Toxicroaks could be cruel and mean, and that their poison was one to be reckoned with. Not to mention that they were agile and powerful and knew fighting moves, which would prove fatal to Smokey, who was a normal-type pokemon.

The sinister pokemon took another step forward, then swiftly scooped up a large rock and hurtled it at Acacia.

"Eeeeeeaaa!" she screeched, jumping out of the way of the spinning object. Smokey hissed, then launched a Hypnosis towards the frog pokemon. The Toxicroak dodged it easily, then scooped up a large gob of mud and arched it at Smokey. The Glameow didn't have time to dodge and was pummeled by the heavy, sticky mud.

"Smokey!" she shouted, running to the cat pokemon.

Smokey could barley move, struggling to stand.

Acacia scooped up the badly injured Glameow, holding it close to her chest, and sprinted towards the field. The Toxicroak thudded after her, growling menacingly.

_I have to…get out of here…have to…_

Acacia heard something cut through the air then was knocked off her feet when something hard hit her back. She gasped as the air was forced out of her lungs. Smokey flew from Acacia's arms, righting herself in the air before she hit the ground.

Acacia crashed into the soil, rocks scraping into her flesh. She struggled to breath, tears filling her eyes from pain. She stumbled to her feet just in time to see the cat pokemon land a perfectly executed iron tail to the frogs gut. The Toxicroak crumbled, holding its stomach. Smokey took the opportunity to use another iron tail, but the frog soon recovered. It glared at Smokey with malice in its intimidating eyes, the sack on its throat groaning and swelling. Dark shadows began to form around the pokemon's clenched fists.

"Watch out! Its about to use Reven-" Acacia called desperately, but she was too late.

The Toxicroak charged at Smokey with surprising speed, wheeled its fist back, then punched.

Smokey sailed silently through the air and hit the ground with a sickening thud.

"NO!" cried Acacia, running to her pokemon.

Smokey lay in a crumpled heap, her fur sticky with mud. Her side was mangled and bloody were the Revenge had hit her. The cat pokemon was unconscious and limp.

Acacia gently petted the cats face. Tears welled in her eyes and she clenched her teeth. "Smokey…you did so well…" she whimpered. Acacia shakily unlatched the pokeball from her belt.

"Return." she whispered.

The pokeball clicked open, and Smokey dissolved in a ray of red light. The ball latched shut, and she hooked it gently back on her jean clip.

The Toxicroak cracked its knuckles.

Acacia stood, clenching her fists in fury, and turned to face her pursuer.

It growled, smiling wider.

Acacia knew she was no match for this pokemon. It could easily kill her with one of its punches, or a drop of its poison. A stick or a rock would do nothing to it. All she could do was run.

Acacia fought to control her rapidly beating heart. The Toxicroak clenched its fists, and Acacia saw green liquid drip out of the sharp points on its arms.

_Oh gosh._

Finally, she gave into the instinct that told her to run. She tore out towards the middle of the field, pumping her legs for all they were worth. The ground pounded behind her as the frog pokemon gained on her.

She swerved between trees, frantically trying to throw the pokemon off. It didn't work. She could hear it thundering closer.

Her eyes wildly searched the field for a hiding place. There was the thicker forest, but she doubted she would make it there on time. She spotted the tree she had climbed earlier.

_Its my only chance!_

Acacia sprinted to the tree, leaped, grabbed onto a lower branch and swung herself onto it. She began climbing as fast as she could, but by the time she was on a higher branch, the tree shook as the Toxicroak made contact with it.

Panting, Acacia continued to climb until there were no more stable branches. She looked down and saw the giant frog quickly scaling the tree, shaking it violently. Acacia wailed, clinging to her branch. Her foot slipped, and she nearly fell. The Toxicroak lunged, grabbed her leg, and drug her out of the tree. Acacia shouted as she was battered by branches.

The frog landed on the ground, Acacia hanging upside-down by her leg in its grip. It brought her closer to its face, the poison sack on its throat groaning. Acacia opened her eyes, seeing how close she was to the putrid thing. She flailed her arms around, attempting to hit it, but she was just out of reach.

Its eyes narrowed, then with a sudden jerk, it flung Acacia across the field. She hit the ground, tumbled and rolled until her side smacked into a tree.

"Uhhh-hh…" she moaned, trying to pull herself off the ground. Her body ached, and every cut on her skin screamed as if it was on fire. Her side and back were badly bruised, and it felt as if a rib or two had been fractured or broken. Her arms collapsed, and she fell back into the dirt. She barley had any strength left. She heard the Toxicroak's foot falls growing closer.

_No…I can't give up. I have to try and get away. For Smokey's sake…_

Acacia grinded her teeth, ignored the pain and shoved herself off the ground. She got to her feet and wobbled, dizzy and weak.

The Toxicroak stood fifteen feet away, smiling at her with its sadistic grin.

"Please…"she whimpered. "Please…let me go, and I will never bother you again."

The Toxicroak came closer. It raised an arm, the long point on its fist dripping with poison.

"P-please…no…" she whispered, stepping backwards and tripping over an exposed root. She fell, and her legs refused to work any longer. She crawled away, tears falling down her face.

_It's really going to kill me…_

She dug her hands into the dirt, trying to search for a weapon. A stick, a branch, a rock, anything. All she found was mushy fruit and grass. Its footsteps shook the ground, and a shadow fell over her. She sobbed, urging her body to keep moving, but panic, wounds and shock were slowly shutting it down. She couldn't even move her knees anymore.

_No…no.....no….somebody…please…help me…_

She wailed, throwing her arms around her face for the impending final blow.

In a last ditch effort, she squeezed all of the remaining air out of her lungs and screamed as loud and high-pitched as she could, putting all her energy into it, her rib cage burning in agony.

_PLEASE…HELP ME!_

_.*._

Scion was jolted awake, a searing pain ripping through his chest. He jumped to his feet, feeling his nerves thrum with energy.

A long, blood curdling scream echoed throughout the forest. Bird pokemon took to the sky in panic. Scion was unsure of what creature could make such a noise, but he soared into the air and followed the sound.

Deep in his core, he knew that he had to be fast, before it was too late…

He flew over a road, a small patch of forest, then he spotted a tall, dark form standing in a field. He saw the pokemon was a Toxicroak, and it appeared to be poising for an attack. He followed the frog pokemon's aim, and his heart stopped. A small, crumpled form lay in the grass. It was dirty, and appeared to be wearing clothes…it had long, brown-blonde hair…

A mental image of Acacia flashed through his mind… the gentle, peaceful human resting on a rock slab, her expression pure serenity….

Rage boiled up in Scion like a pit of lava. He dived, his wings shimmering a metallic gray. He closed in, turned, and sliced his wings across the Toxicroak. The Toxicroak shrieked in shock, recoiling its now bloodied arm and stumbling backwards. Scion landed with a thud on the ground, sending up dust.

"Just what the HELL are you doing?!" roared Scion, standing protectively in front of the trembling girl.

Acacia blinked, shakily bringing down her arms. Her vision was blurry, and it was hard for her to control her muscles. Something had stopped her demise from happening.

_What…what is that?_ She thought weakly, straining to focus on the red creature.

_I think its talking…it sounds pissed…_

The Toxicroak was baffled. It stared at the Scizor, cradling its torn arm.

"The stupid human and its Glameow trespassed on my territory, then cracked me on my head with a freakin boulder!" the Toxicroak yelled in a gravely voice.

Scion snapped his claws, causing the Toxicroak to flinch. "What right do you have to pummel a harmless girl?!" he growled, fighting the urge to attack the Toxicroak again.

"_Harmless?! _Those two bitches about gave me a concussion!" bellowed the Toxicroak, throwing back its arms in exasperation. Blood trickled on the dirt from its arm.

"I'm sure they didn't mean to hurt you. Humans can't tell the difference between a normal forest and a pokemon's territory. They probably came down here to train, and nothing more." Scion said, relaxing his posture slightly. "You didn't have to beat them senseless."

The Toxicroak grinded its teeth, then slowly began to grin. "They shouldn't have come down here…they woke me up on the wrong side of the algae, and I taught 'em a lesson they won't forget."

Toxicroak narrowed its spiteful eyes. "What's up with you anyway? Why are you defending a _human…_?"

Scion froze. He knew that some pokemon loathed humans and anything to do with them. He sensed this Toxicroak was one of them.

Scion didn't trust himself to make up an excuse. He already knew what was coming.

"It doesn't matter." he growled, holding his claws up and taking an offensive stance.

The Toxicroak cackled, drawing its fists up before itself. "Any pokemon who favors humans doesn't need to exist, and that right there is a good enough example for me." It growled, the poison sak on its throat churning.

Acacia still fought to clear the blurriness in her eyes. She couldn't tell if it was dust or tears. She heard the tall red being talking, recognizing the voice. A balloon seemed to burst in her chest, spreading warmth throughout her body. She felt at ease and relaxed…like she could trust the red thing. She heard it speak and she could understand it, but the words seemed to get lost in the haze she was in. The Toxicroak was harder to understand, but she was beginning to pick up enough fragments from its speech to tell that a fight was about to break out.

_Who is that thing…my stupid eyes, getting all inconvenient…_

As the warmth settled her shaking muscles, the haze that clouded her senses slowly began to clear. Acacia blinked, and suddenly there was a burst of movement.

The Toxicroak had lunged forward, slashing the air were Scion used to be with its large red talon. Green poison sprayed the area, a few drops landing on Acacia's legs. She gasped as the acid began eating away at her jeans and she frantically rubbed it off.

Scion appeared up in the air, then dive-bombed the Toxicroak with shinning metallic claws, slicing them at his opponent's head. Toxicroak screeched, swinging its arms blindly and hoping to make contact. Scion dodged, then delivered a heavy blow to the frogs shoulder. The Toxicroak cried, then swiftly arched it's other free fist towards Scion and scraped it's poison claw across Scion's chest. The poison simply dripped off of his smooth, red skin and hit the ground with a hiss. The Toxicroaks eyes grew wide with shock.

Scion smirked. "That crud won't work on me."

With a yell of frustration, the Toxicroak flung its fists, a dark circle surrounding them. Scion quickly backed away, dodging the attack. He crouched, then rocketed over the Toxicroak's head. Something snagged his leg, then he was whipped around and slammed into the ground.

"Not fast enough." Snarled the frog pokemon.

Scion lifted himself off the ground, shaking his head. Even with the protection of his thick armor, the impact of the throw had been enough to jar him. The Toxicroak was stronger then he thought. He had no idea how such a small human like Acacia had endured the frog for this long.

Acacia had her arms covering her head, coughing from the kicked up dust.

The Toxicroak bent, then scooped up a mound of dirt. It quickly grew wet and turned into a great mound of mud. The frog reared back and hurled it at Scion, but not before he could dodge it. Scion took to the air, then began moving very fast. He appeared, then reappeared, nearing closer to the Toxicroak at an intimidating speed. The frog picked up another pile of dirt, turned it to mud and chucked it. Scion easily avoided it, then swooped and delivered a close range shining metallic claw to Toxicroak's abdomen. It wheezed, closing its eyes and holding its stomach. It gasped, then stumbled a little.

Scion landed on the ground in front of Acacia.

"Have you had enough?" he called threateningly.

Acacia blinked, rubbed her eyes and was able to distinguish the red form.

_Is that really him? Am I seeing things?_

She attempted to stand, but her legs had still not recovered.

"S…Scion…" mumbled Acacia, reaching a hand out towards him. He didn't seem to have heard her. He continued to watch the Toxicroak.

"H-heh…" snickered the Toxicroak, looking up at Scion with a malicious grin.

Acacia noticed the frog pokemon's shadow growing lighter. She saw the shadow stealthily begin to take over its body.

_Oh no…I know that attack! It's Pursuit!_

She opened her mouth to shout a warning, but it happened too fast. The shadow swallowed the frog, making it a moving gray blob of mist.

Scion blinked in confusion, then was bashed from his side by a mighty force. He was sent sprawling into the grass.

_No…_

The frog reappeared, chuckling.

Scion lay on the ground in a heap. His face was contorted into a grimace, and his body flinched.

Toxicroak stood over Scion, then reeled back a shadowed fist.

_NO!_

Acacia staggered to her feet, finally regaining control over her legs. She limped out into a run, drawing energy from the warmth that had soothed her earlier. It got stronger, as if it stoked a small ember until it bursted to life in flames.

"RrrrrAH!" she snarled, throwing herself onto the Toxicroak's back.

"What the-" growled Toxicroak, being pushed off balance. It saw Acacia and began whirling around, trying to throw her off. She clung on for dear life.

"Get OFF!" it thundered, grabbing at Acacia. She stuck on, hoping that her attempt to help hadn't been in vain.

Toxicroak spun, and Acacia could feel her grip slipping. The energy that she was feeding off of was dying out fast.

_I don't think I can take much more of this…_

"_Acacia_!"

She turned her head and saw Scion flying straight for the distracted Toxicroak. His claws were crossed in front of him, open and glowing.

Acacia released her grip on the frog, falling to the ground. The Toxicroak turned, then gasped as Scion slashed it with his claws, leaving a large x on its body. Acacia scrambled out of the way as the frog fell backwards, thudding into the dirt.

She could only stare and concentrate on catching her breath. Scion stood a few yards away, also looking winded from the battle. His armor was dusty and dirty, but he appeared to be unscathed. He approached the still Toxicroak, kicking its leg. The frog didn't move.

"He fainted. It's about time…" Scion breathed out heavily.

Acacia continued to stare at the motionless frog.

_Just how the hell did I survive that?_ she wondered in awe.

He looked at her wearily, then his eyes widened, as if finally surveying the damage the Toxicroak had inflicted on her.

"Oh my…" he jogged over to her, then knelt at her side. "Are you ok?" he asked gently.

Acacia looked into his crimson face. His brilliant amber eyes were filled with worry, and his brow was furrowed with concern.

"Yeah-I-um…" Acacia said in short breathes. Her rib cage felt like it had been cracked in two. She didn't remember the pain being this bad before she had tried to attack the Toxicroak.

"How did this happen?" he asked.

Acacia pointed towards the swamp. "Training…used-rock…hit-head…was accident. Swear."

"That's what I thought."

Acacia felt the effects of the shock and adrenaline drain from her body, leaving behind the raw pain. Her cuts burned, her muscles felt like rocks, her back ached, her head throbbed, and her rib cage was in agony. Tears welled in her eyes, and the world began to grow dim. She fought the urge to black-out. She had to get home awake.

"Home…" she whimpered, clutching her sides. She held back the tears, knowing that sobbing would be very painful.

"I'll get you home." Scion said quietly. "Can you stand?"

Acacia put a hand on his claw to brace herself, then tried to push herself off the ground. The pressure in her diaphragm hurt so much, she slumped back down, her chin quivering. She shook her head.

"Here…" he gently took her hand in his claw, then put his other claw around her shoulder. "Try to stand now…be careful."

Acacia did as she was told. When she tried to stand, he pulled her up so that she didn't have to put any pressure on her diaphragm. Once she was on her feet, the pain in her ribs lessened, so she was able to walk slowly. She still needed him as a brace, but he didn't try to walk away from her. They shuffled across the field, then slowly made it through the woods to the main road. They both hobbled down the road in silence, besides Acacia's pained shallow breaths.

_Why did he protect me? Why doesn't he just leave me at the road, so nobody will see him?_ Were the thoughts that ran through her mind.

"Thank-you." murmured Acacia.

Scion glanced down at her, then wanly smiled. "Don't mention it."

Acacia could see her driveway now.

"But…why?" she asked.

He looked at her, puzzled. "Why did I help you? I heard you scream. It sounded like you were being slaughtered. I knew something wasn't right. I followed the sound, then saw you…" he trailed off, eyeing the driveway that was coming nearer. His expression grew dark and troubled, as if he were remembering the event.

Acacia didn't say anything more. When they reached her driveway, she hesitated.

"Afraid…they will…see you."

Scion's brow furrowed. She knew he was nervous about being discovered also.

"Wait… I have an…idea." she breathed, grabbing his claw and limping down the driveway. It grew steep, then she steered him to a trial on the side of the driveway that went into the woods.

She pointed. "Goes around house."

"Ah. Ok, this is a better idea."

They quietly moved down the trail. Acacia's house slowly came into view through the trees. Acacia could see the end of the trail and her back porch across the lawn. They stopped short of the end of the trail, hiding in the shadows of the foliage. She peered through the bushes and branches. Nobody was out in the yard, and there was no movement behind the windows.

"You have a nice home." Scion whispered.

"Thanks." said Acacia. She hobbled towards the house, then hesitated. She turned, then stopped in front of Scion. She gently put a hand on top of his claw.

"Thanks…again-for saving my life and helping-me." she breathed, looking him directly in the eyes and smiling bashfully.

Scion felt his red cheeks grow even redder. The skin under her hand tingled and a shiver ran through his body.

"Your, erm, welcome." he managed to say.

Acacia pulled her hand away then started to hobble across the yard. She reached the back porch stairs, then struggled to climb them. When she got to the porch, she turned and looked back towards the trail. Scion still stood in the shadows. She felt a pang of wistful loneliness shoot through her heart. She worked up a smile, then waved at him. She saw him wave his claw back at her. She chuckled, then turned the knob on the door and walked inside. As soon as she closed the door behind her, the loneliness returned. She felt as if she was in large debt to him…and a kind of connection was strengthened, too. One tends to grow closer to the one that saved them from death.

Exhausted to the point of near numbness, Acacia inched up the stairs to her room and promptly passed out on her bed.

.


	4. Dusk

I would like to thank BekahthePikachu for reviewing this story, and the others who have favorited/subscribed. It means a lot!

This chapter is very long...I was thinking about splitting it in to two different chapters, but then I thought that would drag things out too much.

I hope you enjoy, and tell me what you think.

**~SpiritOfMetal**

* * *

Acacia spent the next few days from her second brush with death in a pain-killer induced haze.

She awoke after passing out on her bed and sleeping for twelve hours straight to hunt for a few pain-killers, then fell back to sleep. Marie had noticed Acacia's strange absence and went to check on her to find that she looked like she had survived a tornado. Not wanting to disturb her, she let her sleep until later that day when the pain-killers wore off and Acacia awoke from intense pain in her ribs. Marie tried to question her, but the most she got out of her daughter was a slurry "I…I fell down a cliff, but I'm just peachy."

Acacia flopped on the couch and didn't move until the next morning.

George arrived, asked why Acacia looked like she went moshing, then locked himself in his room.

Marie began to grow worried about Acacia's condition. She knew pain-killers weren't good on an empty stomach, so she awoke Acacia and got her to eat some breakfast. Acacia perked up a bit, but still looked like a zombie. Marie asked her again what happened, and Acacia said that she had went out to train with Smokey and ended up falling down a small cliff. She told Marie that her ribs were aching and that she thought she had bruised a few. Marie asked if she could take a look, so Acacia pulled up her shirt and let her mother see the damage. Her sides were badly bruised and somewhat cut, but Acacia reassured her that her ribs were the largest injury. With more pain-killers, Acacia lumbered back to her room.

Marie remained worried, but continued to bring her daughter food, liquids, medication and books for her while she healed.

.*.

After seeing Acacia home, Scion returned to the river. Feeling a bit battered from the fight with the Toxicroak, he rested for a day and felt as right as rain after.

Scion found him self growing bored and restless. Hours seemed to drag by, and Scion did all he could to keep himself occupied. He gathered every kind of berry he could find with in a ten mile radius of his cave, practiced his attacks, attempted to talk to other pokemon, slept, watched the river, flew around, but the problem was that he could do all of these things within a half an hour.

Scion's mind always returned to the small human girl, Acacia. He had never seen a human in such a dire state before, and he was ashamed and appalled to know that a pokemon had done the damage. He hadn't seen the sinister frog since, and he was grateful.

Scion spent many hours at the entrance of his cave, sharpening his claws and scraping away at the stone, all the while wondering how the girl was doing.

_She was beaten within an inch of her life…she could hardly walk, and something seemed to be wrong with her abdomen…internal bleeding could be a possibility. _

_What if she doesn't even go to a hospital?_

_I know her Glameow was alright, pokemon are much stronger then humans as far as physical qualities go…but Acacia…humans don't heal quickly after something like that…_

Scion did his best to busy his mind, but it always lead back to the subject. He was very worried about her, and it was natural for someone to be concerned about somebody who was badly decided it might ease his mind if he could see that she was recovering.

Scion gathered himself, then soared off towards Acacia's house. He arrived at the small asphalt road that she lived on and landed, walking the rest of the distance. He was quiet and wary, keeping a good eye on the forest around him. He didn't want any human or pokemon seeing what he was about to do.

He reached the dusty, long gravel driveway and stopped. He stared down the driveway and hesitated.

_Agh, just what am I doing? _

A small breeze stirred the bushes around the driveway, lightly cooling Scion's skin. He could almost see himself slowly leading the injured girl down the driveway…then down the path. She had touched his claw as she said goodbye…how he had felt a strange energy pass between them. His heart warmed, and he smiled.

_I have to check on her. I feel it's my duty to. I don't think I can rest properly if I don't. I just have to make sure her family doesn't see me._

He continued down the gravel driveway, trying to be as quiet as he could. He flew down the trail that Acacia had shown him, landing in the shadows of the trees before the lawn. He could see the house perfectly now…the wood stairs and porch that lead up to the door that Acacia had disappeared into.

He crouched, surveying the area.

_Well, I know she won't be outside._

_.*._

Acacia was up in her room, her TV on and the sound turned low. She lay in her bed reading a book. A glass of water sat on a small desk next to her bed, cluttered with papers, pencils, dirty plates and cups from days before. A small container of painkillers sat on the desk within arms reach.

Acacia sighed, then plopped the book to her side. She stared at her ceiling.

"This sucks so bad. I'm bored, but I can't do anything."

She was under strict orders to stay within her room from her mom. Acacia could feel her body healing with each nap she took, and she tried to tell her mom that she was now good enough to at least take a small walk, but Marie would have none of it. Marie kept telling her that bruised ribs took weeks to heal if one was very, very lucky. Acacia begged to differ – her chest ached only when she laughed or breathed hard.

Smokey was curled up in a ball at the end of her bed. The cat pokemon had probably suffered much worse injuries then she had, but had healed twice as fast. The cat was a bit slow on her feet, but all she had to show for the battle was a small bandage on her side. Acacia was relieved that Smokey was almost 100% better, but was also envious. Her bruises were beginning to turn a fantastic putrid yellow, and her scrapes and cuts were scabbed over enough so that water didn't sting when she took a shower. Her muscles were still slightly sore, but she could walk almost normally.

Acacia slowly sat up, easing her legs over the side of her bed. She looked at the floor for a minute, then glanced at Smokey. The cat's breathing was slow and she hadn't stirred.

Books had kept Acacia busy while her body recuperated, but her mind kept encircling the whole fiasco that had happened a few days before, on a Sunday. She knew the devilish Toxicroak wouldn't show its face for a long time, but she was worried about Scion.

The Scizor had almost become a friend to her. She knew it was just chance that Scion had saved her _twice_ but it almost seemed too coincidental. She knew he lived close by, but she was very, very lucky that he had been around when she got into trouble. She was in debt to him, that was for sure, and Acacia felt abashed for it. She never liked to get in somebody's way, and she never liked to inconvenience anyone and cause trouble.

What had happened had just…well, happened.

Then there was the whole strange event with the two understanding each other. Her mind still couldn't spit out a plausible explanation for it. It miffed her and amazed her.

She remembered being able to understand a tiny bit of what the Toxicroak was saying when Scion had arrived to defend her, but that was the only exception. So far, she could only understand Scion. Smokey still meowed like she always did, and the bird pokemon still chirped in incoherent tunes.

Acacia sighed again. A little worry nibbled at the back of her mind like a persistent Carvanah. She knew Scion lived around the area, but she didn't know if she was going to see him again. She might occasionally, but it would probably be rare. Her heart slightly sunk when she thought about it. He was unlike any pokemon she had ever meant, and she enjoyed his company. There was something about him…something that went deeper then just an acquaintance. She didn't know how to describe it because she had never felt it before, but it was there.

"Scion…" she whispered, looking out of her window, lost in thought.

.*.

"WAAAH!" Scion cried, jumping five feet in the air. All of the nerves in his body were jolted as if a force field had passed through his body. He caught himself in the air and landed softly on the ground. The feeling passed quickly, as if it had never happened.

"What the heck…was that?" he whispered, looking about the forest.

_I don't think that was a pokemon…_he thought, relaxing a bit. He walked to the edge of the forest, were the neon green grass of the lawn started.

_Whatever that was, it didn't last long…I think it's gone now. I keep…I keep getting these strange sensations. _

He scanned the forest again, then sighed.

_Ugh, I have to do this quick. _

He clenched his claws, then gazed at the house.

_I'm going to try to look through a window to try to get a glimpse of her. I just have to make sure I don't catch the attention of anybody else. _

Tensing himself, Scion crouched on the ground, then sprang across the lawn. He came to a corner of the house, flattening himself against its wooden exterior. He crawled beneath the view of a window, then stood up straight, still flat against the house.

He looked up and to the sides of himself. There were three windows in total on the side of the house: one on Scion's left, and one on his right. A double window was just above his head. It was cracked open a few inches. A familiar smell wafted through Scion's nostrils. A warm, chalky berry-ish scent.

_A…Acacia? _Scion thought, surprised that he had recognized the smell so easily. He hadn't even noticed she had a particular scent until now.

He gulped, then looked straight up at the window.

_I'm sure that's her room. Or at least she is close to the window._

He exhaled, turned, flexed his wings, then jumped and slowly hovered up to the window.

Acacia stood, the floor cool to her feet. The sad feeling from her worry was beginning to stick to her, and she needed to shake it. Looking at the beautiful spring forest always got her mind off of things. She stared into the woods, her mind lost in its depths. The leaves were growing at a surprising rate…the whole forest was almost completely full grown.

She could hear the birds chirping, the bugs buzzing…

_I think I hear a bug coming close by…_

Acacia blinked, then there, right in front of her face, was a huge, red creature with shining yellow eyes.

"GUH!" she gasped, cringing as the air left her lungs too fast. She stumbled backwards and nearly tripped. She glared back at the creature, then her mouth slowly fell open as she recognized the pokemon.

Scion held a claw up to his lips, then pointed a claw at the still sleeping cat pokemon.

Acacia glanced at Smokey, who had surprisingly remained asleep.

"What are you doing here?" she whispered, blushing as she realized she was in a pair of pajama shorts and a tank top.

Scion hovered lower to the crack in the window. "I wanted to see how you were doing. I was worried, you looked really mangled the other day." he whispered, looking into her eyes.

Acacia smiled, joy filling her heart. Some one out of her family actually seemed to care about her.

Scion looked her over, then nodded, looking impressed. "You seem to be healing pretty fast… faster then I expected. That's great."

Acacia crossed her arms over her chest, feeling vulnerable in her outfit. "Well, um, thanks. I feel fine, except a dull ache in my ribs…it gets worse when I laugh, or take in or out air too quickly. To be honest, I didn't expect to feel better so fast." she whispered.

Scion smirked. "I'm just glad you're…doing better." he murmured.

Acacia smiled. "Thanks."

A long silence followed.

Scion looked towards the ground, then fidgeted with his claws. "Well, I,uh, should get flying…"

Acacia felt her heart drop, but she nodded her head in agreement. Smokey could wake any minute, and would flip if she saw a Scizor at the window.

Scion turned his body and angled it towards the sky, ready to soar away. Acacia hesitated, then ran to the window. "W-wait, Scion!" she hissed.

Scion stopped, then looked at her and blinked. "What is it?"

"I, uh, wanted to tell you that…I just feel really bad about making you go through so much trouble. I didn't try to nearly die twice, I just…well…" she whispered, her cheeks burning.

_I sound like a babbling idiot._

Scion lowered himself to the window crack and snickered. "Sorry for what? Inconveniencing me? Listen Acacia, you don't have to apologize. I'm glad I was able to save you."

Acacia hung her head. "I usually don't get into so much crap…just these last few days have been bad luck."

Scion smiled. "I understand. Bad luck is universal."

Acacia met Scion's eyes and smiled warmly. They held each others gaze for a minute.

_Why is he so damned nice to me? _

"I have a favor to ask you." she began, not believing her ears. She said it before she had time to think about it.

"A favor?" he whispered, looking curious.

Acacia began to sweat, but she knew it was too late now. She had to go through with it.

"Well, um, not really a favor…just, while I'm healing, I get really lonely…it would be nice to talk to somebody now and then. You can stop by when ever you like. Er,as long as you aren't seen…" she trailed off. She held her breathe, not daring to look Scion in the face and waited for an answer.

After a moment of silence, Scion began to speak. "Uh…well, were would we meet?" he said softly.

Acacia grinned inwardly. "How does the end of my driveway sound?" she said, almost too loudly.

Scion furrowed his brow, then relaxed. "S-sounds good." he said.

"Uhhh…how about around dusk, tomorrow?" Acacia hedged.

Scion nodded, then peaked his eye through the window crack. Acacia was shocked by how bright his irises were. At that moment, Acacia felt something like an egg breaking within her core, releasing a wave of heat. Her heart began to thud.

"I'll see you." he whispered.

Acacia awkwardly waved, then he was gone.

As soon as she heard his buzzing wings disappear, Acacia grabbed at her heart. She felt it thudding at her rib cage, which ached. She couldn't stop it from beating so fast.

_What just happened? _She thought, looking around her room in a daze.

She heard Smokey yawn, then turned to see the cat pokemon stretch, then curl back up into a ball.

_Thank goodness she didn't wake up._

Acacia plunked herself onto her bed and began petting Smokey on the head.

_That all happened so fast…it was kinda awkward, but at least I will have somebody to talk to. Why the heck…is my heart beating so rapidly?_

Acacia concentrated on breathing slowly again, and eventually her heart returned to a normal rhythm.

Acacia smiled to herself. _Tomorrow should be interesting._

_.*._

Scion flew through the air, then landed on a tree branch beside Acacia's driveway. He dug his claws into the tree, fighting to control his thrumming body.

_That odd sensation came back…_

After a minute, the pulsing subsided. He steadied himself, standing up on the limb. He gazed back up the driveway towards Acacia's house.

"I…I messed it up." he mumbled to himself. "I planned on just sneaking a peak of her to calm myself, but instead…" Scion closed his eyes.

Deep down, he knew he had been happy to talk to the human.

"I just didn't know what was going to happen…I really didn't expect her to be in such good health. The last thing I expected was for her to…"

Scion closed his mouth, then scratched his arm. What Acacia had asked was the least he had expected from her. He didn't know she wanted to spend time with him…humans usually had other human friends that they usually got together with. It was unusual…but Scion was humbled and he didn't complain. He was excited to be finally making a new friend.

"Dusk, tomorrow, at the mailbox…" he murmured to himself. He hadn't noticed a mailbox before. He turned his head to the right and surveyed the end of the driveway. Sure enough, a black mailbox stuck out from the ground from a wooden beam.

Scion blinked, then launched himself off the tree branch and flew over to the mailbox. He hovered above it, then looked back towards Acacia's house.

_This is a little out in the open…oh well. There is a nice view from here._

He smirked, then flew off into the woods.

Acacia spent the rest of the day walking around the house, getting her legs used to supporting her weight again. She did stretches and breathing exercises, trying to temper her body in time for the short outing the next day.

Smokey followed her around, also growing stronger and moving faster. Marie approved of the whole routine, but was a little suspicious…she knew her daughter enough to tell that Acacia was planning on doing something. Marie confronted her, and Acacia replied that she was planning to take a short walk around the property in a few days…she was growing restless and needed to get fresh air. This seemed like a reasonable explanation, so Marie pushed the doubt out of her mind and continued with her work.

George came out of his room and sat on top of the stairs, watching Acacia pace about the kitchen with dull curiosity.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked in a monotone voice.

Acacia cringed, sighed, then looked up at her brother. He had the same brown hair and burgundy eyes as she did, but his nose was a bit smaller and his skin was a few shades sallower. Dark circles were usually under his eyes.

"I'm exercising." she sneered through clenched teeth.

George snorted. "That's gotta be the most pathetic exercise I have ever seen."

Acacia clenched her fists. She was in no mood to deal with her brother.

"Its called physical therapy…it helps the body get back into normal movement after an injury."

George narrowed his eyes, then stood. "Well, you have fun with that." he mumbled disdainfully, then came down the stairs and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Acacia growled. "I hope he goes to a friend's house soon."

George did end up leaving the house shortly, to Acacia's relief. She continued walking around, and stopped to read magazines and books she found lying around the house. Her muscles felt stronger by the time five o'clock rolled around, and her ribs felt less tender. Smokey was now trying to get the bandage off her side, growing frustrated that she couldn't clean the fur under it. Acacia gently took the bandage off and was surprised to see that the cat pokemon's gash had completely healed, except for some missing hair.

Marie got off work and began to busy herself in the kitchen, preparing spaghetti for dinner. Acacia settled herself down in front of the downstairs TV, watching cartoons and science programs.

Acacia was watching a knowledgeable program about pokemon super abilities when a Scizor was showed. Acacia sat up in her seat, paying close attention.

The narrator went on to describe the pokemon's physique, and short clips were shown of the pincer pokemon walking, jumping and fighting. Acacia was somewhat disappointed – Scion seemed to have a much stronger physique, and he was faster. He also had brighter eyes, and he…had a slightly different color. Acacia couldn't put her finger on it, but there was something different. The narrator began to explain the Scizor's special abilities.

"Scizors are known for their extremely hard armor. Due to its evolution process, the Scizor's skin is mixed with metal and steel. The exact element can vary with the type of Metal Coat used to evolve it. Even though its armor is tough, it is very sensitive, maybe even being able to sense a bit more then humans can with their skin. The most sensitive extremities are its claws. Scizors use them much like we use our hands.

"Scizors make up for their lag of speed from its earlier evolution with heightened attack and defense.

Although the pincer pokemon has wings, they are not meant for flying. They are used rather to flap at high speeds to cool down high body temperature."

This caught Acacia's attention.

_Wait, what? Scion was flying around all over the place!_

Acacia continued to watch the show, but it ended the short segment about Scizors with a few more battle scenes. When the show switched to a commercial, Acacia sat back on the couch and rubbed her chin.

"Hmmmm…" she mumbled, perplexed.

_How is Scion able to fly like a pro when his species can't even glide? I'll have to ask him about it when I see him tomorrow._

Acacia continued to mull this around in her head and watch TV when Marie called her for dinner.

After Acacia stuffed herself with food, she went out on the front porch and sketched some drawings in a notebook. First, she started with plants and trees around her, but eventually that lead to drawing pokemon. Acacia attempted Smokey, then some random Chatots, then got the idea to try the sinister Toxicroak. This drawing was what looked like a Toxicroak shadow, with red eyes and an evil smile. Shivering, Acacia decided to stop working on that drawing and start a new one. She played around with shapes until she found herself thinking about Scion. About everything that had happened in the past few days. Unconsciously, she began scribbling the outline of Scion. Acacia snapped out of her gaze and realized what her hand had accomplished. Slightly embarrassed, she began to clean up the sketch. She drew him flying, standing, and looking at her with soft eyes. She stared at this drawing, almost hypnotized by the eyes.

When she pulled herself out of her creativity, the sky was beginning to darken. Folding up her notebook, she began to get out of her chair when her mother opened the screen door and stepped out onto the deck.

"Acacia, do you know about the major storm system coming our way tomorrow night?"

Acacia frowned. "Um, no."

"They are calling for some severe super cells and tornadic activity. I think they say storms start tomorrow night, and it really starts the next day."

Acacia furrowed her brow. "Okay." she said, concerned. She usually loved thunderstorms, but tornadoes were a different story.

Marie hesitated, then gave her daughter a stern look with her hazel eyes. "That means no going off and hiking, or doing what ever when the storms hit."

Acacia pouted and sighed. "Ugh…fine."

Marie went back inside, leaving Acacia to herself.

_I hope it won't start storming until late at night,_ she thought.

Acacia headed inside, ate a few cookies, then joined George and Marie in the TV room, watching a bit of a reality series. After a while, Acacia lost interest and headed to her room. She read a sci-fi book until she went to sleep. Smokey took her usual place at the end of Acacia's bed.

.*.

Scion spent the rest of the day flying around, trying to find a new berry source. He managed to find a rare Oran berry and quickly ate it. Other then that, it was the usual berries.

He spent some time at the river. He heard other pokemon talking about the recent spike of humidity in the air.

_So I'm not the only one that noticed, _he thought. Rocks around the river were a bit slimier then usual, and the river water was warmer.

Listening to them babble, Scion lounged on a rock and lost himself in his thoughts. The next day was a significant day for him. He didn't know why, but he felt it was a big deal. It was just a simple meeting, but it was on purpose, not just a coincidental bumping-into.

_Maybe that's why I feel like I have to be…prepared._

Scion walked around the path he had found Acacia on, feeling restless. He came down the same route she had from the forest and saw how grand the river looked.

_It's a truly beautiful place,_ he thought contently. _No wonder her mouth fell open…_

Scion found himself smiling fondly. He sighed, then continued down the river bank.

After getting bored, Scion left the river bank and filled up his water bottle. He came to his cave and forced himself to eat some of his stored berries. He washed their bitter aftertaste away with water, and sat by the cave entrance and began sharpening his claws thoroughly while watching the sun set. He meticulously grinded away at his pincers, making them as sharp as he could get them. Suddenly, he stopped when the thought of Acacia crossed his mind. How when he had held her hand, she hadn't been cut by his claws because he didn't intend to hurt her.

_I…I don't want to make these so sharp so that I might accidently hurt her…_

Scion flushed and he stopped what he was doing. He felt strange, as if something was blooming within him. It was a pleasurable sensation, but he felt slightly uncomfortable for experiencing it. The feeling gradually lessened, but never fully left him. After his heart finally settled, he realized that the daylight had almost completely drained from the sky. He hastily felt his way to the back of the cave and curled up on a patch of partly soaked moss and willed himself to go to sleep. The complete darkness seemed to unleash his minds thoughts, letting them wander to where ever they pleased. Scion rolled around, trying to get comfortable and thoroughly soaked himself in the process from the wet moss. He kept thinking about the next day, the Toxicroak he had defeated, Acacia's house, the humidity in the air, and Acacia. He also mildly thought about his old friend and trainer, Dominic.

After a few hours, Scion grew frustrated. "Uuugh!" he moaned, slamming the ground beside him. He got up and felt around the cave for a flat, loose rock. He found one, then began searching for the tell-tale squish of moss. He found some half-dry, plush moss near the entrance of the cave and ringed most of the moisture out of it. He returned to his sleeping spot, positioned the rock were his head would lay, and placed the moss on top of it. He settled onto the ground, sighing as his head met something soft. His mind slowly relaxed, thoughts loosing their grasp on him. The sounds of the cave condensation dripping, the soft rushing of the river, and occasional cries of night pokemon lulled him to sleep.

He jerked awake in the middle of the night, terrified and chilled to the bone with sweat and water. He couldn't remember what dream he had had, but he felt horribly lonely and daunted. Once he calmed down, he stumbled to the entrance of the cave. There was no moon or stars – only overcast clouds, causing the night to be absorbingly black. Everything was silent – even the river seemed to be asleep. Scion stood in the dark, listening to his rapid breathing grow slower. A sudden roar echoed throughout the forest, causing him to flinch.

_This night is so dark…so silent…it is better to be asleep._

_.*._

Acacia awoke the next morning feeling renewed. Her body still had its aches and pains, but they were bearable enough to make one feel like they had gone for a long jog. Her ribs allowed her to breath deeper, and for that she was happy.

Overcast clouds gave the day a gray color, but the smell of heavy humidity clung to the air. There was no doubt a storm was coming.

Acacia took her time getting out of bed, falling asleep a few times before she managed to roll out of the covers. Sleep rarely felt this good, and she savored as much as she could get. When her mom's rummaging in the kitchen roused her, she staggered out of bed and started looking for an appropriate outfit.

_Yep, today I'm going to try to look like I didn't get beaten to a pulp by a giant toad._

She was able to settle on a pair of light colored capris and a blue striped button-up tank top. She took a long shower, almost falling asleep again. After that, she got dressed and combed out her hair. She scrubbed her teeth, then rubbed raspberry lotion over her arms. She stood in front of the mirror, looking herself over for the first time since she had been injured. Her skin looked pale, but was slowly regaining its olive color. A small bloody scab hid behind her bangs, so she spent a while cleaning it up to where it was hardly noticeable. She applied antibacterial cream to the larger scrapes and cuts on her legs and arms, then left the bathroom.

She lazily poked around the kitchen, rummaging around for something good for breakfast. What she had eaten for the last few days was oatmeal, and she was looking for food a bit more flavorful and satisfying. She settled on a box of cereal with biscuits and strawberries on the side. After she was done eating, she plopped herself down on the front deck and sat in the sunshine, soaking up its warm and welcoming rays.

"Ahhh…" she sighed, enjoying the smell of the humid air and the sun's soft morning warmth. After a few minutes, she began to grow hot and moved out of the sunshine. She stood, then leaned on the deck railing, gazing down her driveway. Acacia pictured Scion's red form casually sauntering up the entrance, his smooth red skin gleaming in the daylight. She shook her head, trying to clear her mind of the image.

_Why am I thinking of him so much…it's almost like I can't control when he pops into my mind._

Acacia rubbed her forehead. "Well, today is the day…" she smiled, excitement pulsing in her veins. She found herself growing close to Scion, and she was pumped to be getting together with someone to just hang out. She hadn't had a friend since she was in high school, and most of the people at her school had been more like acquaintances.

She tapped her fingers on the wooden railing of the deck, then meandered inside to feed Smokey some pokefood. Marie was busy on the computer, and George had spent the night at a friend's house. Acacia wandered into the computer room and sat on a small comforter. Marie continued typing, then turned and looked at Acacia.

"Hmmm…you're all dressed up today, aren't you?" she said.

Acacia looked up, frowning. "Yeah, just felt like wearing something fresh and clean." She nervously cracked her fingers.

_I hope she doesn't think that I'm going somewhere…_

Marie turned back to her work. "Its about time you changed, you were in pajamas for three days."

Acacia mentally sighed in relief, then left the room. Smokey was in the dinning room munching on her food. Acacia sat at the dinner table, then stretched her legs out and looked at them. Her calves were still badly bruised, the abrasions nearing the end of their colorful cycles. She poked at a few of them and winced.

_Man…that pokemon beat me up like I was nothing. Smokey's smaller then me and she has completely healed. I…I wish I wasn't so weak._

Acacia was disturbed by the fact that she was glaringly feeble, but it was true. She was so bothered by it that it angered her. She wanted to learn how to defend herself and not have to completely rely on others to protect her.

_I could try some martial arts classes, but I would still be nothing to a pokemon…it would be like a child trying to beat up a brick wall. _

She ran her hand through her hair and sighed in frustration. Thinking about that was useless…it would only put her in a foul mood. She cleared her throat, then sat back in her chair and watched the trees outside of the slider door. They whipped about in the growing wind.

"I wonder when the storms will arrive…" she whispered. " I just hope they blow in after I get to talk to Scion."

Acacia fiddled with her hair, then started doodling on a stray piece of paper. After she got bored of that, she decided to continue reading her sci-fi book outside in the lessening sunshine.

.*.

Scion awoke to light shining off of a pool of water in his cave. It was reflecting right onto his face, burning through his eyelids.

"Uuuuuuuphgh…" he moaned, peeling himself off of the rock and moss he had fallen asleep on. Scion had had a rough night. His head ached dully and his eyes were sticky. He staggered to his feet, then steadied himself against the cave wall.

"I haven't had a night like that in a looong time…" he mumbled. Rubbing his face, Scion walked over to the lip of the cave. The sun was shining, but overcast clouds still remained. The humidity was so thick in the air that Scion could taste it.

_A storm is coming…_Scion thought warily.

After stretching his legs, arms and wings, Scion walked back into the cave and found a puddle of water near the entrance. He knelt, looking at his reflection.

"Aw, come on!" he mumbled in annoyance. Smudges of dirt were smeared all over his face from the night. Scion scooped up a clawful of water and splashed it over his face, rubbing vigorously. After he felt satisfied he was clean, he looked back into the puddle of water to see he had gotten most of it off. He stood, then looked his body over. Mud smears dotted his chest, abdomen and legs. He could feel most of it caked onto the skin on his back.

"I'm getting really sick of waking up covered in mud…" he mumbled. Scion flew out of the cave and landed at a shallow shore beside the river. He approached the water, lightly dipping his foot in to test the temperature.

"Ah…warmer then usual." he sighed, then wadded into the river. He stopped when the murk came up to his waist, then began to scoop water up and scrub at his body. He had quite a hard time getting the mud off of his back – he strained and strained, but his arms would not allow him to reach the middle of his spine.

"Ack-" he muttered, struggling to reach his back. He stumbled backwards, his heel slamming into a large rock under the water. Scion lost his balance, then splashed into the water.

"Pleh!" he sputtered, shaking the water off his head. "Well, I'm pretty sure I got most of the stuff off."

Feeling thoroughly clean, Scion wadded back to shore and shook his wings off. He climbed up to a rock and let the sun dry his wet skin. Once he was dried, he inspected his armor. Light shimmered off of his slick, clean red surface.

"Ahhh…that's better. This is good enough for me." he sighed in contentment. His stomach made a gurgling sound, and Scion realized he was hungry. He soared up to his cave and retrieved a few berries from his plastic baggie, then took a swig of water from his bottle. With the two containers in his claws, he lounged at the entrance of his cave, his back against the wall. He stared at the two objects in his claws with admiration.

_These things have come in so much use to me…who would have known I could use things like these?_ A mental image of Acacia handing them to him flashed through his mind.

_I really should thank her for these…maybe I should do it when I see her today._

His face grew hot. For some reason, it made him nervous to think about approaching her and thanking her.

He set the objects aside, then viewed the river valley. Bird pokemon fluttered around distant trees, but the water of the river was very calm. No fish pokemon jumped or even swam to the surface.

"Today is a quiet day…" he murmured to himself.

_The other pokemon probably sense the impending storm, too._

He looked at his claws and fiddled with them. "Well, uh, today is the day…" he murmured, feeling restless. He was oddly anxious about meeting Acacia, but looked forward to it. It was the main event of the day, and so far he had done a good job of distracting his mind from the subject.

"What to do, what to do…" he mumbled.

_Well, I already have enough berries for a few days, so I don't have to get any more or else they will go bad and stink up the cave. I could fill up my water bottle, but it's only half full. I already cleaned the dirt off of myself…I don't really feel like flying around today…_

Scion closed his eyes and hung his head. "I wish I had more things to do."

He glanced back towards the cave to where his sleeping spot was. Suddenly, an idea struck him.

"AH! I know…I could make a more comfortable and dry sleeping spot."

Scion purposefully rose to his feet, then strode back to his moss bed. He knelt next to it, poking at the moss with his claw. Water dripped out of it.

"Heh…gonna need something that stays dry." Scion grabbed onto the moss and ripped it off of the ground, the placed it a few feet away. He eyed the dark, wet patch of rock were the moss used to be.

"Hmm…leaves might do."

Scion flew out of the cave and landed on the trail that Acacia had wandered down. He walked further into the forest, looking for broad, flat leaves. He spotted a tall Poplar tree and flew up to the canopy of the forest, then began to hunt the tree for large leaves. He plucked the biggest ones, and soon he had a large pile of leaves in his arms. He buzzed back to his cave and laid the leaves out on the wet spot the moss had left. Soon, there was a thick carpet of flat leaves six and a half feet long. Scion surveyed his work.

"It needs something on top of it…something soft."

Scion once again soared out of the cave and searched the trail for soft foliage. He came upon a patch of long, dried grass and clipped as much of it as he could. Liking the texture, he searched for more until he had an armful of it. He brought it back to his cave and carefully positioned it on top of the leaves. He had so much grass left over that he made it into a thick, bouncy lump that his head could rest on. After he was finished, he eased himself onto the foliage. It was surprisingly comfortable, springy and warm.

"Ahhhh….this is more like it." he smiled, closing his eyes in relaxation.

_Its better then soaked moss, but not quite as soft as human beds…those are the best._

At that thought, Scion sat up.

_I wonder what time it is?_ Scion thought suddenly.

_Wow, I almost forgot about tonight…_

He eagerly got to his feet and jogged to the entrance of the cave, then looked up at the sky. Overcast clouds still covered most of it, but the sun could still shine through a little. He got a good glimpse of the sun- it was directly overhead.

"Noontime." he murmured.

Feeling defeated, Scion sat heavily on the lip of the cave.

_Can this day go by any slower?_

_.*._

Acacia jerked awake when something wet landed on her nose.

"Huh-what?" she slurred, sitting up in the deck chair. Her book fell off of her lap and slammed into the wooden deck. Rain was beginning to fall. Acacia grabbed her book and fled inside, watching the sky. A dark cloud passed over her house, but the rest of the sky remained overcast.

The cloud quickly passed and the sprinkling stopped.

"Whew-ee, I'm glad it didn't start pouring!" Acacia exclaimed, wiping water droplets off of her book. She glanced across the room at the kitchen stove's digital clock and it read five thirty.

"Damn." Acacia whispered.

_I don't even remember falling asleep. Time sure flies when you're asleep._

Acacia set her book down on the oak table and looked outside again. The sky was beginning to darken, and not just from clouds.

"Shit, just when is dusk supposed to be!" Acacia exclaimed. "I guess it would be around twilight, when visibility is half and half." she pondered to herself.

_I hope Scion knows what dusk is…_

She zipped over to the fridge, pulled out a TV dinner, popped it in the microwave, then ate it quickly. By the time she was done eating, it was six thirty. The sky was quickly beginning to darken.

Acacia threw her trash away, then jogged over to the door and was in the process of putting on a pair of sandals when Marie walked into the room.

"Just what are you doing, little missy?"

Acacia stopped dead in her tracks. "I, uh, um, was going to go for a quick walk…"

Marie put her hands on her hips. "You can't leave until you clean the cat litter box."

Acacia was relieved, but put-off at the same time.

_Why does she have to tell me to do crap right when I'm about to leave somewhere? I've been lounging around all day, practically looking for anything to do, and she – ugh!_

Acacia slipped her shoes off of her feet and calmly walked to the back of the kitchen, grabbed a plastic bag from a closet, then quickly set to work cleaning the Smokey excrements. When she was done, she put on her shoes, went out to the deck and plopped the bag inside a dumpster. She ran down the front steps, ducking under porch. She peaked her head up to the railing and watched her house's front windows. Marie moved from the kitchen to the back door, checking to see if Acacia had done her job. Marie walked back into the kitchen, then disappeared down a hallway towards the computer room.

Acacia didn't waste a moment – she bolted down the driveway, nearly loosing her footing on the loose gravel. Her legs were reacting well to the stress she was putting on them, but her chest was beginning to ache. She slowed her pace to a fast jog, then came around a bend. The black mailbox came into view, but –

_Where is he?_

As Acacia approached, she expected to see him emerge from the forest, or fly down the road. Neither happened. Acacia slowed her jog to a trot, then stopped at the mailbox.

She was panting hard, and she fought to control the force of her breathing. She put her hands on her knees and looked around the area. The murky blue light of dusk was beginning to descend on the hillside, but Acacia could see no trace of Scion.

Once her breath was under control, she walked up to the mailbox and looked inside, thinking he might have left a letter, a sign of some sort, something that hinted he wouldn't be able to make it. The mailbox was dark and empty. She shut it, then scanned the valley warily. A cold, hopelessness began to creep over her unwillingly.

"No…" she whispered.

She waited a few more minutes. Nothing happened.

Feeling truly crestfallen, Acacia sunk to the ground next to the mailbox and slumped against it. She hung her head, letting her long brown hair cover her face.

_Why did I even get my hopes up? I'm so stupid…_

Acacia covered her eyes with her hands. She felt tears beginning to well up in her eyes.

_Why the hell am I crying? This is no big deal…_

Yet deep down inside, Acacia felt as if she lost something crucial.

A rustling noise sounded from the dark conifer forest across the road. Acacia jumped up, almost banging her head on the mailbox. An image of the evil Toxicroak flashed through her mind, and Acacia froze with terror.

_He's coming back to finish the job!_

A faint buzzing noise filled the air, and a dark shape rocketed from a tall pine tree and landed on the road a few feet in front of her. Acacia stumbled backwards. The shape righted itself, then peered at her and took a step forward.

"Acacia?" asked a hesitant voice.

Immediately, Acacia recognized the voice. She smiled, quickly wiping the moisture off her eyes. "H-hey, Scion!" Acacia faltered, trying hard to keep the shake out of her voice.

Scion stepped closer, and Acacia could see him better in the dim light. His golden eyes had a glow of their own. Acacia was once again hypnotized by them.

He looked concerned. "Are you alright? You sound like you were crying."

Acacia laughed. "Pfff, cry? Why, I have no reason! I just had something in my throat."

Scion blinked. "Heh…well, how are your injuries doing?"

Acacia was grateful for the change in subject. She pointed at her chest. "My ribs only ache when I run…I felt it when I came down here." She pointed to her legs. "Bruises and scrapes are still on my legs, but that's about it!"

Scion smiled. "That is good to hear. I have never seen a human heal from injuries so quickly."

Acacia blushed a little. "Thanks…"

Scion opened his mouth, then closed it quickly. He moved his claw to the back of his head, then looked at the ground. Acacia found this odd. She hadn't seen him hesitate once until now.

She noticed a flat rock outcropping next to the driveway, then walked over to it and sat on it. Scion watched her, as if dumbfounded.

Acacia patted the rock next to her. "Come over here and sit, Scion. My legs are getting heavy, and its easier to talk to somebody when they are sitting next to you."

Scion looked at the rock, then back to Acacia. "Er, yeah." he said, then walked over to the rock and awkwardly sat down a foot away from her.

Acacia smiled, and Scion returned the gesture.

"I heard it's supposed to storm tomorrow." Acacia said, picking at her sandal.

Scion turned towards her. "Really?"

Acacia nodded. "Yep. My mom told me about it. She read about it on a weather website."

Scion looked at the ground in front of him and nodded.

Acacia looked at him. "You don't seem so surprised. Did you already know about it?'

"Yeah, but not like how you found out. I could sense it…most of the other pokemon can feel it, too."

This interested Acacia. "How can you sense it?"

Scion began stirring the ground with one of his claws. "I can feel the humidity in the air, and the rocks around the river were very slimy and sticky. The moss in my cave got annoying soaked, too."

"That's neat." Acacia said quietly. "I guess I would notice that kind of stuff too if I paid enough attention." Acacia laughed, and Scion smiled.

She watched him poke at a pebble.

_Something is off about him tonight, _thought Acacia, concerned. _Something is bothering him. I wonder if he will tell me?_

"Hey, Scion?"

Scion looked up quickly. "Yes?"

"You seem…like something is bugging you. Are you ok?"

Scion stared at her for a second, then his pupils dilated as his gaze softened. He turned away, then began to clench and unclench his claw. "I just…I just wanted to, um…try to thank you for the things you gave me."

He paused, and Acacia continued to listen.

"I ate the trail mix, and it was great, a lot better then the disagreeable berries that I usually eat for all of my meals. I used the baggy afterwards to keep the berries that I find, and the water bottle has saved me lots of time with retrieving water. I never knew I could use things like that, but they have really come in handy."

Acacia beamed. She was glad she had helped him in at least some form.

"I'm glad they had use to you."

A great weight seemed to be lifted from Scion. His shoulders relaxed, and a smile spread across his face. He stopped playing with the gravel and leaned back, using his claws to brace himself.

Acacia relaxed too, feeling more at ease. Suddenly, she remembered something.

Acacia turned and faced him, her eyes set on his. "Scion, I've been wanting to ask you something. I saw it on a TV show, but it just doesn't make sense."

Scion looked at her, a slight look of surprise on his face. "Hmm? A TV show?"

Acacia continued. "Well, I saw this program about pokemon abilities, and they happened to show a Scizor."

Acacia paused and watched Scion's reaction. He sat up straighter, interested.

"The show went on to explain the abilities of Scizors. They mentioned something that I don't understand…that Scizors can't fly."

Scion blinked his bright eyes, then started to chuckle. He seemed to be holding back stronger laughter.

This caught Acacia off guard. "What's so funny?"

Scion calmed himself, rubbing his eyes with one of his claws. "Heh, ha, oh, sorry about that. But that is ridiculous!"

Acacia grew quiet. "W-why is it funny?"

Sensing the serious tone in her voice, Scion stopped laughing. "Well, all Scizors have wings. We usually use our wings to cool down body temperature, and trust me, that really comes in handy. My old trainer, Dominic, saw the potential in my wings. He saw that they could be used for more then just fans. He talked to me about it, and I agreed – I had always wanted to be able to fly."

" So, he devised a bunch of training techniques that would strengthen my wings and give them more muscle. It took a lot of time and hard work, but I finally had enough muscle in my wings to support my body weight. The more I used my wings, the stronger I grew…and pretty soon, I had mastered my own flight."

Acacia was impressed. "Wow, that is really cool…I didn't know you had an old trainer."

It had never occurred to her that Scizors couldn't naturally be found in the wild.

"Yes, he is an old friend."

"Did he just…kick you out?"

Scion chuckled. "No, he was a good person. He would never do that to a pokemon unless they wanted to live in the wild."

Acacia grew quiet. "Is that the reason why he released you?"

Scion looked into her eyes. "Dominic was a good man. He was my best friend for a while, and he trained me well. I learned everything I know from him. I was part of his battling team from when he was in his early twenties until he was in his late fifties. We were good friends, don't get me wrong, but battling just lost its luster."

" I didn't want to battle anymore…I was beginning to feel odd, displaced…something was calling me. Dominic noticed and confronted me about it. Battling was beginning to wear on him, too, and he was close to retiring – by then, he had kids and grandchildren. I tried to explain to him my feelings the best I could, but he didn't understand me like you can. He didn't need to – he already knew something was up, and that it was time for a change.

"We both decided that the possibility of release would be the best option for me. Dominic understood. He said he would miss me, but this would be the best for me. We said our goodbyes, and he set me off to live on my own."

Acacia was silent. "Wow. Dominic sounded like a great guy. Do you…ever find yourself missing him?"

Scion sighed, then looked up at the darkening sky. "I do miss him from time to time, but we both knew that things were better this way."

Acacia stared at him. Scion was a pokemon, of course, but it was hard for her to think of him as one. He seemed so much like a person, but at the same time, he wasn't. He was unlike any pokemon she had ever met.

"Its good you guys have things at peace." Acacia said, fiddling with a piece of her hair. She was lost in her thoughts for a moment when she heard something move beside her. She looked and saw Scion relaxing, laying flat out on the rock, his arms behind his head. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to be having a moment of contentment. She watched his chest rise and fall. She couldn't see them in the darkening light, but she knew his skin and muscles were rippling with movement.

She blushed, quickly looking away, and scanned the valley around them. They sky was really beginning to turn dark, but a faint amount of light still gave her a little to see by. A light, warm breeze blew in from the west. She could hear the gentle sway of grass and leaves.

A sudden bright light flashed in the distance. Acacia saw it again a second later – the source was coming from behind her. She turned and saw a lightning bolt race across the sky in silent , otherworldly beauty. Acacia turned back towards Scion and reached a hand out to his shoulder to get his attention. When her hand was an inch away from his skin, something passed through her finger tips and traveled through her body. She flinched, surprised – it had been like static, but it went within her body instead of traveling on her skin or hair, like static usually did. She hesitated, and in that instant, Scion's eyes opened. He stared at her, and Acacia was once again lost in the depths of his optics. Her face burned and her heart raced. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out.

_Ah, you stupid retard, say something! Anything!_

A loud, tremendous boom echoed throughout the valley. Acacia whipped her head towards the clouds, and Scion sat up quickly, also watching the sky. Lightning crawled across the dark clouds in the distance behind them. Scion got to his feet.

"What is it?" Acacia asked anxiously.

Scion looked down at her with his faintly glowing eyes. "Come on, get up!" he urged.

By now, the night had arrived, and all was dark. Acacia couldn't see his expression, but she could hear the strange urgency in his voice.

"Wait, wha…why?" she asked, confused.

Scion ran a few feet down the driveway, then stopped and looked back at her. He gestured with one of his claws. "Come on, get up Acacia!"

Acacia stood, but remained at the rock. "Why? What the heck is-" Acacia was stopped short as Scion lunged at her and grabbed her wrist. A stifled squeak of surprised was caught in Acacia's throat. Scion began to jog down the driveway, and Acacia had a hard time catching up. He turned left, then stopped in a small mowed down section of the field that was part of Acacia's yard. It overlooked the valley and the side of a large hill that Acacia lived on. The eastern sky was set ablaze by spidery lightning. Acacia was awestruck.

"Wooow…" she murmured.

"Isn't it amazing? You get a perfect view from here…"

Acacia snuck a sideways glance at him. Lightning slashed across the sky, and Acacia had a momentary glimpse of his face. His red skin gleamed, even in minimal light. His eyes shined with excitement, and his mouth was open in a broad smile. He looked completely enchanted by the light show.

Acacia smiled in spite of herself. "Yeah, it's spectacular. I love seeing the storms at night."

Scion casted a glance at her and nodded. "They are one of my favorite things to watch. I have seen them before, but none quite as bright as tonight's…"

Acacia smiled, then attempted to move her left wrist. Something stopped it. She looked down and realized that Scion was still holding her wrist…she hadn't even noticed it until now.

Acacia looked up at Scion, her heart racing. She began to sweat, and her mind was a sudden blur of panic.

After a second, Acacia became aware of another pulse besides her own heartbeat. She sensed a kind of energy flowing into her. She knew it wasn't from herself… it was alien, but at the same time it felt familiar and welcoming. She concentrated on the pulse, then carefully let it become stronger. It was a warm, tender energy that soothed her unexplainable panic. As she probed at the energy with her mind, it began to turn alerted and excited. The energy seemed to take the shape of something whole, something much more complex –

_BOOOOM. _Thunder shook the night. Acacia jerked her wrist out of Scion's claw, frightened from the sudden noise. The immediate disconnection from the intense energy made Acacia feel dizzy and weak. She thought she blacked out, but it was just from the darkness of the night. She looked up to see Scion staring at her.

"Hey, Acacia, are you alright? Did the thunder scare you?"

Acacia hesitantly laughed. She realized she was panting. "Heh, yeah, it scared the bejesus out of me."

Scion smiled, but took a step closer to her. Acacia could see the concern in his gaze. "Are you sure you're ok? You don't look very good."

The truth was, Acacia didn't feel good at all. She felt like a wet noodle. Her ribs began to ache profoundly again, and her legs felt weak. She began lowering herself to the ground. "I….I just need to sit down, that's all." She fought to keep her voice casual and airy. She didn't want to get Scion worried about her.

Acacia hunkered down into the cool grass. Scion followed suit.

"That is some beautiful lighting, but it looks like a bad storm…its going to hit soon." murmured Scion.

Regaining her strength, Acacia felt more obliged to talk. "Yeah. That's what my mom told me."

Scion sighed. "It's really moving fast…"

A closer rumble of thunder shook the ground. Scion began to get to his feet.

"It's almost right overhead."

Mostly recovered, Acacia stood. "Yeah. I'm-"

"_Acaciaaaaaa_!" called the shrill voice of Marie from the house.

Startled, Scion's eyes grew wide and he tensed his body as if to fly off.

Acacia looked at Scion. "Calm down, she isn't going to come and get me. She's just calling me to come inside before the storm gets bad." she said gently.

Scion relaxed, but he still casted nervous glances down the dark driveway.

"I think it's about time for me to go, Acacia. Your mother is worried, and I don't want to be caught dead in this storm."

Acacia reluctantly nodded her head. "Yeah…" she trailed off quietly.

Lightning flickered in the distance, and thunder rumbled. The wind began to pick up. Acacia could smell impending rain and damp earth.

She looked sheepishly at Scion. His bright eyes squinted, and Acacia could tell he was smiling. He stepped closer to her, and Acacia could once again sense his body heat.

"Acacia…thank you for inviting me down here. I'm sorry if I seemed nervous, I just have never…done anything like this before. I…I enjoyed it."

Acacia gulped and smiled nervously. "Y-yep, I liked it too. It has been fun. Do you want to, um…do it again sometime?"

Scion nodded his head. "…Sure."

Acacia felt something wet hit her arm. Large drops of rain began splatting on the ground around them.

"It's the beginning of a downpour!" Acacia squeaked, shielding her head with her arms. She started back towards her house, then turned around. Scion still stood in the driveway, unmoving.

"Hey, Scion! You better hurry back to your cave before the lightning gets here. Bye!" she called, squinting from the rain and straining to see him in the darkness.

Lightning momentarily lit up the valley, and Acacia could see he was already soaked with water. He looked oddly forlorn.

Acacia opened her mouth to ask if he was ok, but he began waving his claw at her. "Goodbye!" he called. Acacia smirked, waved, then ran back up the driveway. She slowed to a stop, something urging her to look back. She threw a glance over her shoulder, and lightning once again illuminated the night. Scion had turned around, but he still stood in the driveway. She saw him begin to turn his head in her direction, but again the world turned dark.

Acacia waited for the lightning to return, and once it did, he had vanished.

Longing and misgiving crept into her chest. A chill passed over her, and she felt raw and exposed to the rain and cold. She shivered, ducked her head, and jogged up the driveway.

_Something was wrong with Scion…it made me sad to seem him like that. I feel horrible, and I have no idea why. Maybe because I didn't ask him about it. And that feeling I experience earlier…it was scary, yet so intense and…and intimate. I feel disturbed, like something violated my deepest emotions._

Acacia reached her house and trudged through the front door. Marie was in the kitchen. She saw her and her hands went to her hips.

"And just where in the world were you?"

Acacia watched the water drip from her hair. "I told you, I went for a walk. I was watching the lightning storm before it hit."

Marie's tone grew soft. "Ah, well…are you ok? You sound sad."

Acacia sighed and tried to rub the water off of her arms. "Yeah, I'm fine, I'm just worn out."

Marie gave her a concerned look, then went about her business in the kitchen then walked to her own room. Acacia noticed the time - it was a little after eight o'clock.

She went to her room, grabbed a warm pair of pajamas, and took a steamy shower. She felt chilled to the bone, and it wasn't all from the rain. After her shower, she went downstairs and rested on the couch with a small blanket.

She still felt rattled by her experience earlier, and the image of Scion standing alone in the rain kept popping up in her head. She cared about him, and she felt troubled for not finding out what was wrong.

She wrapped the blanket around herself and looked wistfully at the dark and empty fireplace beside the house.

_I wish a fire was going…some warmth would do me some good._

Scion sat alone at the entrance of his cave. Lightning scared the sky. Streams of water trickled down over the front of the cave in streams.

Water dripped from his soaking body, but he was oblivious to it.

Scion had let his nerves get the better of him, but managed to thank Acacia for what she had given him.

_Why was I so nervous? It was like I...couldn't bring myself to talk to her. Agh, I was so stupid! I waited a day and a half to talk to her, and my nerves went and ruined everything. _

Acacia had been kind and managed to get him to relax. Their conversations were intriguing and Scion had enjoyed them. Acacia's question about his flight still made him smile. He liked the fact that he felt he had impressed her with his ability to fly. She had been a good listener. Oddly, they didn't talk about why they could talk to each other in the first place. The conversations happened naturally.

_The lightning was amazing…I could feel the powerful electricity in the air – it made me feel so alive! But…_

Scion grimaced. Acacia had acted strangely when he brought her to the field to watch the storm. He remembered grasping her soft wrist with his claw.

_At that very instant, I felt something like a warm chill pass over me, but that was it. I…I completely forgot about her wrist until she pulled it away._

Scion squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again.

"I know the thunder probably spooked her, but she seemed disturbed…like she had seen a ghost."

Acacia's paled face flashed through his mind.

"It was very strange...she was alright afterwards, though."

Yet Scion still had the distinct feeling that something else had bothered her. It made him uneasy.

He sighed, closing his eyes. He was tired, that was for sure – it was odd that he felt this drowsy. He had more energy after he had battled that Toxicroak then he did now.

Scion remembered watching Acacia run off in the rain, leaving him to himself.

_It shocked me – I didn't expect her to randomly leave like that. I wanted to talk to her more…I wanted to ask her questions about her life. She had done most of the question asking._

Scion opened his eyes and began to stir a piece of moss next to his leg.

_I didn't know how to react – then it hit me…like an arctic wind._

Scion stopped picking at the moss.

_It's been a while since I had felt something like that…but, could it be that I felt…loneliness?_

Scion furrowed his brow. He was right – loneliness was exactly what he felt, and what he was feeling at the moment. He had felt lonely before, but never at this magnitude. It was a powerful, saddening feeling that left him feeling cold and small.

A shiver racked his body, and Scion decided it was time for him to retire to his bed. He felt his way back in the cave until his foot came in contact with soft leaves. He bent over and relaxed himself onto his sleeping mat. The dried grass clung to his wet body like glue. He grabbed a leaf out from under the grass and began to pat himself down. Once he was finished, he slowly relaxed onto the bed. Scion lay there, staring into the darkness of the cave.

As he was beginning to drift off, a bolt of lightning struck a tree in the forest with a deafening zap. Scion jerked upright in his bed, wide awake and frightened. Thunder shook the river valley.

Scion felt reminiscent of the night before, when he had woken up scared senseless and lonely. He repressed another shiver and squeezed his eyes shut, willing the memory to go away.

He pulled some grass over his head and body and took shelter in the cover of sleep.


End file.
